


Malibu Madness

by Vanilla98



Series: Avengers in University [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel (Comics), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Abuse, Alternate Universe - College/University, BAMF Steve Rogers, Blood, Bullying (mentions), Daddy Issues, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Hurt Tony, Love, M/M, Possessive Steve, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Avengers, Protective Bruce Banner, Protective Jarvis, Protective Steve Rogers, Sex, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, slightly rough sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-28
Updated: 2018-06-02
Packaged: 2019-01-25 14:52:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 35,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12534204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vanilla98/pseuds/Vanilla98
Summary: After an eventful semester at school, Tony brings Steve and his four other friends to his new house in Malibu. There, they get to see what Tony goes through at home. And to be honest, they're not impressed. Howard Stark is always abusing him, Maria Stark is barely at home and there is only so much Jarvis and Ana can handle. Moreover, they can see Tony struggling to hold up his masks. Will they, especially Steve, be able to convince Tony that he is going to be okay and that they will always be there for him?





	1. Day 1: Welcome to Malibu

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! I'm finally posting part two and I'm glad I can finally do so. I had so much of fun writing this, and had my best friend read this. I was also explaining to her the plot and we both got excited!!
> 
> So here it is, Tony and his friends going to Malibu. I hope you guys enjoy this story just as much as I enjoyed writing it, which was a lot!  
> The chapters are little, but they'll be long. There will also be a smut in this story, but that'll probably be in the middle of the story. And it'll be my first time posting a smut so I'm kinda nervous, haha!
> 
> I did some research on Malibu to write this, and now I simply want to visit it; so gorgeous. :)  
> Also, I'll be updating the tags as I upload the chapters. So do look out for that. And I'll be uploading the next few chapters when I have the time because I have school stuff to do and I'm working on a couple of fics at the same time, but I won't delay for too long, so don't worry :)
> 
> I wanted to add that it's okay to read this as a single story as I will mention about part 1's events here and there. If you want, you can read it from part 1 for the full effect. :)
> 
> But here's the first chapter and I really hope you all will enjoy it! Have a great weekend y'all!
> 
> **There's mentions of blood and abuse in this chapter.**

The jet was making its final descent towards LAX. There was the announcement about keeping the seats upright, windows open and tray tables stowed. Tony chucked away his crossword puzzle book into his bag. He pushed up his tray and locked it into position. As he was sitting at the window seat, he lifted up the window shutter. The sunlight hit him suddenly, and he squinted his eyes.

He put on his seatbelt and leaned back. Tony sighed contentedly. He turned to look at Steve, who was sleeping beside him. The sunlight was dancing gracefully on Steve’s face. Tony took some time to admire Steve’s blonde eyelashes, glowing under the light. His messy blonde hair did all sorts of funny things in the pit of Tony’s stomach. He also saw the little drool on the corner on Steve’s lips, which made Tony smile.

The plane banked to its left, which made the sunlight slip away from Steve’s face. A few seconds later the plane banked to its right. Steve slowly opened his eyes when the sunlight hit his face again.

“Morning,” Tony greeted him. “We’re gonna land soon.”

Steve sat up. He wiped his mouth and stretched well. “Did you sleep, Tony? Or did you finish up the entire crossword puzzle book?”

Tony chuckled. “I have two more puzzles left.”

“You’re nuts,” Steve sighed. He moved closer to Tony and gave his cheek a kiss. He grinned when he saw Tony blush.

“Was I the only one who was awake?” Tony asked.

Steve turned to look at the others. Bruce, who was beside Steve, was hugging his blanket and still had his eyes closed. At the left side, Thor was also sleeping with his head hanging low. His right leg was stretched out all the way to the aisle. Natasha and Clint were cuddling each other and were looking out of the window.

There was a slight turbulence, which made Thor jolt awake. He looked very disoriented and was staring at Steve like he was a stranger. But after everything clicked into place, Thor grinned at Steve.

“Sir, excuse me,” one of the female flight attendants said to Thor. She nodded at his stretched out leg.

“I am sorry,” Thor smiled and pulled his right leg in.

Bruce woke up with a cough. He rubbed his eyes and tried to stop the coughing fit. Steve pat his back but it didn’t help much. Tony gave Bruce the bottled water.

“Hey, we’ll get some fresh LA air once we land, Bruce,” Tony smiled. “You’ll be fine in no time!”

“Thanks Tony,” Bruce croaked.

“Sir, we are going to land. Please stay seated,” one of the flight attendants spoke.

Thor was standing up. When the flight attendant asked him to sit, he pouted at her. He sat back down, with Clint patting his back and whispering reassurances.

“What’s the prob?” Tony asked Clint.

“He wants to pee pee,” Clint replied. He looked pretty tired.

Tony sighed and sat back. He knew it was going to be a wild ride with his housemates at his place. Only the higher power knew what was installed for them.

The plane continued to make its final descent. Within ten minutes, they were having a smooth touchdown in LAX.

 

...

 

“Please tell me he’s done,” Clint muttered.

He was holding onto the bags and was waiting outside the washroom. He slowly sat down on one of them. Natasha was leaning against the luggage trolley. Steve and Tony were standing near the bags while Bruce was toying with his jacket.

They had already cleared the customs. It was a bit of a challenge when they were picking up their luggage. Clint spotted his on the conveyor belt. He tried to pull it but because he was so tired, it didn’t budge. Thor ran around the conveyor belt, and managed to pull the luggage down. Tony and Natasha were laughing at the scene of a big blonde running around the belt. The other passengers were chuckling. But Thor didn’t seem to notice that. He was glad he managed to get the luggage, meaning, he emerged victorious in the battle of the luggage and himself.

“I hope so,” Steve sighed.

“Tony, I hope there are no big plans today. I want to catch some sleep man!” Clint yawned.

“Don’t worry, Clint,” Tony smiled. “All the main events start from tomorrow.”

Clint gave a thumbs up. He was already dozing off. Tony’s phone rang and he picked it up.

“I am done, my friends!” Thor’s loud voice suddenly came. It made Clint jerk awake and slide down the luggage back, landing butt first.

“Aw Thor,” Clint sighed in annoyance. “Quit giving us scares, pal!”

“I thought you would have gotten used to it?” Thor smiled and helped Clint up.

All of them picked up their bags and made their way out of the terminal, with Natasha pushing the trolley. There was excitement on Tony’s face. He was literally bouncing beside Steve. The others looked tired and were just walking in the direction Tony was walking.

The automatic doors slid open and the six of them came outside. Bruce smiled as he breathed in the LA scent. Clint and Natasha were smiling. Thor and Steve were looking around, taking in the scene of people boarding and exiting the cabs.

“Now where is he…” Tony muttered. “I can’t see you. You gotta show yourself up!” Tony spoke in the phone.

“Master Stark,” a voice called out. Natasha turned to look at a middle-aged man smiling at Tony. “There you are.”

“Jarvis!” Tony shouted in glee.

He forgot about his surroundings for one second and ran towards his butler. He wrapped his arms around him and hugged him tightly. There was tears in the corner of Jarvis’ eyes. He was squeezing Tony and both of them couldn’t let go of one another.

“Is Ana here?” Tony asked.

Jarvis broke the hug. He quickly wiped his tears. “No, no. She is at home. She is preparing your favorite cappuccino coffee cake.” Jarvis smiled.

“Hey, meet my awesome housemates. I told you about them over the phone!” Tony announced excitedly. “Jarvis, meet Steve Rogers, Thor Odinson, Bruce Banner, Clint Barton and Natasha Romanoff. Guys, meet my butler Jarvis.”

They exchanged greetings, smiling. Jarvis insisted that they should leave now. He helped them load all their bags into the 7-seater car he drove. After everything was settled, they were on their way to Malibu.

It was a 50 minute journey from LAX. Clint took this opportunity to catch a quick nap. He rested his head Natasha’s shoulder. Bruce and Thor were now looking out of the window, at the things happening around the highway. Tony and Jarvis were speaking while Steve was listening to it.

“How’s the new house looking like?” Tony asked.

“The final touch ups are done. It looks ten times grander than our mansion in New York,” Jarvis smiled.

“How’s mum?”

“Mrs. Stark is doing just fine. She can’t wait to meet you and your friends.”

Tony couldn’t wait to introduce them too. He also couldn’t wait to look at his new home situated at the edge of a cliff. He was having a hard time, containing his excitement. Moreover, they could go to the seaside any time to have fun or to simply bask in the sunlight.

The rest of them settled down for a nap. They were having jet lag issues and couldn’t keep their eyes open. The vehicle’s air conditioner blasting at them wasn’t helping. As the others slowly drifted off into another round of sleep, Jarvis turned the volume of the radio up slightly to let the music accompany him.

Clint’s eyelids slowly fluttered open. He sat up further in the car. He turned around to find all the others except Tony asleep. He rubbed his eyes and was looking out of the window. That was when he saw the view. He couldn’t help but gape at what he was looking at.

He was looking at the clear blue sea just beside the highway. The waves were dancing away freely and the sunlight was already making the water look sparkly. There were some shop vendors at the other side of the highway; there was a man selling strawberries too. Clint loved the view. He just couldn’t wait to go to the mansion and look at the sea from a different vantage point.

“We’re already nearing, master Stark,” Jarvis said.

“Good to know.” Tony stretched.

The car now turned into an isolated stretch of road. It wasn’t long before they stopped in front of a turning. Jarvis honked three times. The others who were asleep jerked awake.

“We’re here?” Natasha asked. She rubbed her eyes before sitting up.

“I guess so,” Tony replied.

A security guard walked towards the car. “Jarv!”

“Meet master Stark and his friends,” Jarvis introduced them.

“Ah, our guests,” the guard smiled. “Welcome to the Malibu Mansion.”

The rest of them smiled at the guard. Jarvis continued to drive in.

“I don’t see the mansion at all,” Clint yawned. He looked slightly better after the nap. “All I see is a road surrounded by trees.”

“Well,” Jarvis laughed. “You’ll see it. Sit back and relax.”

The others were looking outside expectantly. After a few bends and passing by a few tall trees, their patience paid off. The 6 of them were looking at a big helicopter landing patch. To top it off, it was surrounded by a huge grass field. It was so big Clint was sure they all could play a game of tag there and never get caught. They passed by two tennis courts, with two men placing the nets in the middle.

Everyone were staring in awe at the spread out field and huge mansion in front of them. Jarvis was smiling so much at their reaction.

He drove around a statue and stopped the car right outside the main entrance of the mansion.

“Welcome to the new Stark mansion,” Jarvis winked at all of them. “A few boys and I will have your luggage moved to your rooms, which is at level 3. Oh and the plan is for two of you to share each room.”

“I’m with Steve,” Tony said it too quickly, which earned him an eye roll from Clint.

“Nat, you and I?” Clint asked. She agreed to that.

“It shall be you and I, friend Bruce!” Thor grinned enthusiastically. They both exchanged a fist bump.

“Alright, let’s go in. Make yourselves at home, kids!” Jarvis enthusiastically cooed.

He and a few other workers had started to take the luggage out of the back of the car and move it to the allocated rooms. Tony and his friends walked into the house. Clint and Thor outright gaped at the interior design. The walls were cream colored, the hardwood floor they were walking on was smooth and looked polished, there was a weird looking statue on their left and further down at the ceiling was a small opening which allowed sunlight to come in.

There was a round coffee table and a long couch around it. There was a television mounted on the wall opposite the long couch and below it was a fireplace. Beside it, there was a big space dedicated to being a bar.

The windows were just big, long glass panels, which gave a generous view of the blue sea. Clint already loved the view.

“This is beautiful,” Bruce said  to Natasha. “I only can wonder how the rooms are gonna look like.”

“Oh trust me,” Tony gently nudged him. “The rooms are _awesome_! I saw the blueprints already.”

“Please do make yourselves at home!” Jarvis smiled. He was looking at the kids from level 2. “Please do sit down and I’ll get something for you all to eat and drink!”

He walked down the stairs and went straight, disappearing.

“I thought there was a wall opposite the stairs?” Thor scratched his head. “Butler Jarvis just walked into it?”

Clint snorted at that.

“Uh, no Thor the kitchen is there,” Tony smiled.

The rest of them settled down. After a few minutes of getting used to the place did everyone realize that the house was fully air-conditioned. Natasha sighed contentedly before leaning back on the couch. She already felt comfortable.

“Alright everyone,” Jarvis walked out of the kitchen carrying a tray. He carefully placed it on the coffee table in front of Tony and his friends. “Ana, my wife, made crepes for you all. So, these are basic ones, the Nutella ones and strawberry ones.” There must have been at least 21 crepes laid out beautifully on the plates.

Tony immediately took one Nutella crepe for himself. The others helped themselves. Bruce and Clint loved the taste of it; they were trying not to moan in front of Jarvis. Natasha and Thor decided to go for a second round of crepes. Steve and Tony were still enjoying their first piece.

“Jarvis,” Bruce started. “This is so good!”

“Ana has a secret crepe recipe,” he grinned. “The entire Stark family loves it too.”

“How do the kids find the crepes?” a female voice came from behind Jarvis.

Before he could reply, Tony jumped up from the couch and ran past him. He squeezed Ana in the name of giving her a hug.

“Oh Tony,” she whispered. “I missed you!”

“How are you!?” Tony asked.

“We’re fine,” she smiled. “We really couldn’t wait to see you. And your friends!” She walked to where Jarvis was standing.

“Yes. Ana, meet Steve, Bruce, Natasha, Clint and Thor,” Tony introduced them. “Guys, meet Ana.”

They exchanged greetings.

“There is still more food being prepared for you all,” Ana announced excitedly.

“And I can assure they’re all delicious,” Jarvis confirmed.

Both him and his wife walked back to the kitchen, leaving Tony and friends to their own devices.

“Nice place you know,” Clint said. “Gosh I’d never want to leave this place if it were my house!”

“I agree!” Thor piped up enthusiastically.

“Can’t wait to see where we’re gonna sleep, actually,” Steve smiled. He picked up another strawberry crepe and sat closer to Tony.

It wasn’t long before only 1 crepe was left on one of the plates.

“I don’t want to mess this place with a food fight,” Clint said. “But I want that last one!”

“No friend Clint, I say this is mine!” Thor declared loudly.

“Hey I liked the basic ones! Both of you finished the strawberry and Nutella ones!” Bruce rolled his eyes. He sat back on the couch with his arms folded.

“Guys,” Tony started to laugh. “Ana can prepare more. We don’t need this little brawl.”

Natasha got up from the couch. She picked up the last piece of crepe and started to eat it, halting the little argument the three guys were having.

“Oh no…” Steve raised his eyebrows.

“Tasha!” Clint exclaimed. “I didn’t expect that from you!”

“While the three of you argued, I took that distraction as an opportunity to take the last one. Sometimes, you have to be smart, Clint,” Natasha said while munching.

“No!” Clint scrambled towards Natasha.

He tried grabbing the crepe away from her. Bruce moved away; he didn’t want to argue with them anymore. Thor joined Clint. He tried to pry the crepe away from Natasha’s hand. Clint managed to pin down her hands and Thor was tearing the crepe away from her. They were laughing loudly, completely forgetting they were in another person’s house.

“Tony!” an enthusiastic female voice came from level two.

“Mom!” Tony grinned. He ran up the stairs to get to her.

“Shit shit shit,” Clint cursed.

All of them sat back on the couch properly. Natasha adjusted her hair. She ate the little piece of crepe that was left in her hand. Thor was eating the one he had snatched away from her. He tore a medium-sized piece and gave it Clint, who silently began nibbling it.

“How are you?” Maria Stark asked her son. She pulled him for a tight hug.

“I’m fine,” Tony smiled. He rested his head on her shoulder, feeling the chiffon material of her dress and smelling her Victoria’s Secret perfume.

“I missed you so much,” she whispered.

“Guys, I swear to God, we don’t how to behave,” Clint said quietly.

“It took you this long to realize that, Clint,” Steve raised an eyebrow at him.

The five of them below stood up once Tony and his mother started to walk down the stairs.

“Mum, these are my friends,” Tony enthusiastically said. “Meet Steve, Natasha, Clint, Thor and Bruce. Guys, meet my mum.”

“Mrs. Stark,” Natasha stretched out her hand. “I’ve heard a lot about the Maria Stark Foundation. I’m impressed.”

“Oh sweet!” Maria grinned. Instead of shaking her hand, she pulled Natasha for a hug.

“Great,” Clint mumbled.

“At least she did some research,” Bruce said.

“Alright kids, lunch will be ready soon. Ana’s cooking is the best and I’m sure you all will enjoy yourselves here. Jarvis will take good care of you all,” Maria said once she let go of Natasha.

“We will,” Steve smiled.

“Alright, I’ll speak to Ana for a while and leave. I’ve got somewhere I need to be,” she smiled.

Everyone else were walking back to the couch.  But Maria pulled her son to the side, to talk.

“Tony,” she said softly. She looked worried. “Did you let him know you’re here?”

Tony immediately knew who she was talking about. “Oh please. I don’t want my mood to be ruined. He knows I am here with my friends.”

“But did you go up to his office to tell him a hi?” she asked.

“Mom,” Tony looked at her with a pleading look. “You know how he gets when he looks at my face! Why would I do that to myself?”

“Just tell him you’re home and then you’re done. No need to have a long conversation.”

“As if,” Tony scoffed.

“Please, Tony,” his mother looked at him. “He’s at his office. Just a hi would do.”

Tony looked at his mother with his lips pursed. He didn’t like talking to his father. It never ended well for either of them most of the time. But he knew he didn’t have a choice. It was now or his father would get to know about his presence later. But, why delay it? He’d rather face whatever impending doom now. He sighed.

“Fine,” Tony said with a hard voice.

His mother smiled at him, all the worry melting away from her facial features. She walked away to the kitchen while Tony reluctantly took the stairs up to his dad’s office.

“Guys, I’ll be back. Just gonna say a hi to my dad,” Tony smiled at them.

He was feeling very nervous.

“That might not end well,” Steve said.

“I hope he comes back down in one piece,” Natasha said.

All of them looked at Tony’s back disappearing further down level two, with trepidation. Clint hoped nothing bad would happen to his friend.

 

...

 

Tony knocked on his father’s office door, three times. He opened it slowly after he heard his dad telling him to come in.

“Oh, it’s you,” Howard Stark said. He was holding a pen on one hand and a glass of whiskey on the other. He was seated on his table, wearing a suit.

“Just came here to say hi,” Tony said. He was looking everywhere except for his father’s eyes.

“Obi said you brought your friends over,” Howard said. “Are you going to introduce us to one another?”

“Soon,” Tony sighed. “I’ll see you later.”

“We’re not done yet.” Howard stood up. He placed his pen and glass of whiskey on the table gently.

“I have other things to do,” Tony tried to leave.

“I heard you phoned Obi the other day and asked him some questions,” Howard walked towards him. “You shouted and created a scene over the phone.”

Tony gritted his teeth. He didn’t want to get reminded of that day; that day he saw his work being uncredited and that day he threw his tools across the hostel room.

“Welcome to the real world, son,” Howard smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Some things had to be done.”

“True. But I’m not uploading any of my ideas on your godforsaken server ever again. I think I had enough,” Tony declared.

“You think you had enough?!” Howard sneered. He took a step forward and was in Tony’s personal space. Tony immediately took a step back and his back was hitting the door. He could smell the alcohol reeking from his father. “Yeah one bad experience and you had enough! Be a man, Tony. Stark men are made of iron! Don’t be a spineless prick!”

“I’m not a spineless prick!” Tony shouted back. “Crediting a person’s idea or work is part of good ethics, which you don’t have! I saw you and Obi grinning like fools for the stupid camera!”

“How dare you!” Howard snarled. “I was trying to protect you! The media are like vultures and they need a prey to rip apart, so that they can survive. You make a very easy target, especially after that little mess you made by nearly crashing your car, drunk!”

Tony took in a deep breath. His good friends were just a level down and he was really looking forward to spending a good time with them. He didn’t want his father or his words to ruin his mood. “Okay, fine. I get it. But don’t you dare tell me you wanted to protect me. I can’t bear to hear that anymore. You just want yourself to shine and bask in all the spotlight. You are just like any other businessman, selfish and cruel. I get it. I fucking get-”

There was a ‘crunch’ sound that suddenly filled the room.

Tony didn’t expect that. He was just talking in a non-aggressive manner, and was actually about to open the door and walk out of that stupid office. But before he could even turn the handle, a clenched fist came flying out of nowhere, and hit him hard, on his nose. Tony vaguely registered his dad giving his leg a kick. Everything else was swirling in the room. Tears started to blur his vision, and he felt liquid running down his nose. He immediately cupped his hand over his nose, and tried to protect his head in case his father was going to strike it with another blow.

“Fuck off!” Howard shouted. “Get out of my fucking sight!”

It was as if Tony was in a cave. His father’s voice was muffled. Everything was slowly turning grey, and Tony suddenly realized that he was holding his breath. He quickly opened the door and slammed it shut.

He leaned back against the door and started to gasp for air. He grimaced at the pain emerging on his face. His left hand covering his nose was covered in blood. He could hear someone calling his name. It was Steve. Oh no, his friends were just below. He didn’t want them to know about this.

He slowly got up and made his way to the stairs. He took a step at a time, so as to not fall down. His vision was returning back to normal and the muffled voices calling his name started to get clearer. Soon, he successfully reached down and made his way to his friends to assure them that everything was fine.

“Tony, you okay?” Steve asked.

“We heard some shouting. We thought of coming up but didn’t want to invade your privacy,” Natasha said. She sounded very concerned.

“I’m fine,” Tony managed to say. “Nothing to worry.” He was still covering his nose, but he didn’t see the blood dripping down his shirt. Steve had seen that though. And so did his other good friends.

“There’s fucking blood running down your shirt man!” Clint exclaimed.

Tony stopped dead on his tracks. He looked down and groaned in frustration.

“What the fuck,” Natasha said.

All of them ran towards him. Steve forcibly removed Tony’s hand from his nose. They all stared at him, with horror. There was blood dripping down from his nose and Tony was looking like he was trying not to cry.

Thor had swung an arm around Tony, telling him that everything was going to be fine. Natasha and Clint had run to the kitchen to get Jarvis, while Bruce was examining the injury. Steve was… well, very angry.

“Master Stark,” Jarvis dashed to Tony’s side. “Oh no, not again.”

“Again?!” Steve said, throwing both Jarvis and Tony an incredulous look.

“Yes Master Rogers,” Jarvis sighed sadly. “This has happened several times.”

“Okay move him to the kitchen first,” Bruce said. “Jarvis, you gotta help with stopping the bleeding.”

“Surely, Master Banner. I know what to do,” Jarvis said.

Clint shuddered. He knew what Jarvis was going to do because he had experienced that last semester, thanks to Ross.

“And I have some words to exchange,” Steve said, firmly. He was about to go up the stairs when Tony grabbed his arm.

“No! I’m not going to allow that.” Tony glared at Steve. “Stop trying to be an idiot!”

Steve easily pulled his arm out of Tony’s grip. “And you refrain from stopping me.”

With that, he ran up the stairs.

“Fuck me,” Tony growled while Jarvis slowly led him to the kitchen. The others didn’t know what to do. They didn’t know if they should enter the kitchen and check on Tony or go to level two to back Steve.

Steve didn’t bother knocking the office door. He slammed it open, startling Tony’s father, slightly. Howard looked up with a little glare.

“And who are you?” he slowly asked.

“Someone who cares about your son more than you do,” Steve glared at him. “And how dare you hit him.”

“He’s my son,” Howard said as a matter-of-factly. “I do whatever I want with him.”

“Oh yeah? In that case, I can defend him from you whenever I want, _Mr. Stark_ ,” Steve spat out the last part. “You’re not gonna hit him as long as he’s with us, with _me_. Do you understand?!”

Howard raised an eyebrow at Steve. But he was impressed by his courage and with how Steve was able to converse with him confidently.

“And if I do?” Howard asked.

“You’re gonna face us. Or the authorities,” Natasha answered while entering the office.

“Yeah,” Clint scowled. “He’s one of us. We’re not gonna let you off so easily if you lay even a finger on him.”

Bruce and Thor agreed with him. The five of them were standing there in a single file, glowering at Howard; all those glowers should have set Howard’s office on fire.

“Don’t you touch him. Especially with us here,” Steve said, with a low growl.

After one last look, the five of them exited his office. Thor slammed shut the door on his way out.

“How do you think Tony is?” Steve asked.

“Bleeding should be stopping soon. Other than that, I think he’s mad at you for going up,” Bruce replied.

They all walked into the kitchen, where Ana and a few helpers were setting up the table for lunch, and Jarvis was helping Tony stop his nosebleed.

“It fucking hurts, J,” Tony groaned. “And Steve, gosh the colossal idiot who just went up to talk to dad. What if dad had hit him?”

“He didn’t and you don’t have to worry about him,” Steve said.

“Nah-uh, keep your head down,” Bruce warned him. “You can look at our beautiful faces once you’re alright.”

“Where is his mom?” Natasha asked.

“She already left the house for some meeting,” Ana replied.

“I didn’t know it was this fucked up,” Clint whispered to Natasha. She nodded her head and folded her arms.

After a few minutes, Tony’s nosebleed stopped. Jarvis suggested they all went up and saw how their rooms looked like. All of them slowly trudged up. They turned left and stopped. There were a few room doors and no one knew which one was whose.

“First room door belongs to Clint and Nat,” Tony said. “Second is mine and Steve’s and the last is Bruce’s and Thor’s. The rooms below belong to my parents and Jarvis and Ana. Plus, the office is there.”

“Fantastic,” Clint commented.

They all opened their doors and entered their rooms. Clint gasped at the size of it. It was like a suite from some five-star hotel, looking so modern yet simple. The bed was a queen size, with fluffy pillows and a duvet cover. There was a television mounted on the wall opposite the bed. There was a walk-in closet and a study table beside the bed.

Natasha walked across the room to the glass paneled windows to look at the sea. The view was simply marvelous.

“You know Tasha, if I had a room like this, I’d never get out of the house!” Clint laughed. He threw himself onto the bed and hugged the bolster, squealing like a little kid.

On the last room, both Thor and Bruce were already unpacking. Thor nearly let out a scream when he saw the size of the room. He ran around for a while and only stopped once he stubbed his pinky toe on the side of the bed. Bruce was shifting their clothes to the walk-in closet. He was still quite stupefied by his surroundings, as he has never had a walk-in closet, let alone a big grand mansion.

In the middle room, Steve was checking on Tony. Their clothes were still squashed in their luggage bags.

“Mother hen, I’m fine!” Tony protested.

“You need sleep, Tony,” Steve sighed. “You gotta rest for a while because you don’t look so well.”

“Maybe it’s because I got a punch from my old man?” Tony rolled his eyes. But once he saw the glare on Steve’s face, he sobered up. “Steve, really I’m okay.”

Steve didn’t say anything. He just kept looking at Tony, the glare changing into a look of concern. “I’m not gonna allow him to touch you, Tony.”

Tony had goosebumps when he heard the determination in his boyfriend’s voice. He turned away and looked out of the glass panels. The sun was high above them and he could feel the heat radiating from the panels. Tony felt Steve’s hands curl around his hips.

Steve gave Tony’s neck a kiss before resting his head on his shoulder. Both of them slowly swayed side to side together. Tears welled up in Tony’s eyes, but he was trying to blink them away. He didn’t really want his friends to know how badly he could get hurt at home. But it looked like he didn’t have a choice.

He really loved and appreciated the comfort Steve was providing right now.

Steve’s stomach chose this moment to growl. Tony snorted and wiped away the tears that fell out of his eyes. He turned to face Steve.

“Lunch is downstairs. I hope,” Tony smiled.

Steve gave Tony’s cheek a sweet kiss. Both of them decided to unpack their items quickly and then go for lunch.

 

...

 

In the evening, after 6, Clint and Thor were engaged in a fierce battle, which was a Wii dance game. They took turns dancing for over an hour, trying to make one another lose.

The Wii set was located at the same level, at the end of the hallway, right beside Thor’s and Bruce’s room. Clint and Natasha were using it first after Jarvis helped them set up. They were playing bowling and then had a dance match.

Bruce and Thor joined them after taking a good afternoon nap. Thor got really excited when he saw what both Clint and Natasha were doing. Natasha was kind enough to let Thor have a chance to challenge Clint. She was waiting for the remote but gave up after 10 minutes.

And none of them would have guessed Thor could dance so well. He got so many “perfects” in the game and Clint was having a hard time trying to keep up. They went a couple of rounds, with Clint winning some and Thor winning some. There was even one round that ended with a draw. Natasha and Bruce had free entertainment.

“I knew a battle was going on. Steve and I could hear it!” Tony grinned. He and his boyfriend strolled in casually.

“Hey, sit back and enjoy this!” Bruce smiled. He patted on a spot on the couch, and gave Tony and Steve some space.

“How long has this been going on?” Steve asked, throwing the two dancing figures an amused look.

“An hour plus,” Natasha answered.  She was eating a Nutella crepe, which Ana made, again. She offered the plate of crepes to the two of them who had just joined.

“You alright?” Bruce asked.

“Better. Mother hen here took a good care of me!” Tony gestured at Steve, who narrowed his eyes at him, but with a smile.

Another round of the game had just ended. And it was a draw!

“Dammit!” Clint swore. He wiped a sweat bead rolling down his forehead. “I was this close to winning!”

“I was even closer, friend Clint!” Thor beamed.

“Rematch. You and me. Now.” Clint adjusted the game systems again.

“Oh come on man!” Natasha sighed. “Bruce and I are fucking bored watching the both of you dance to Bollywood stuff to Gangnam Style again and again!”

“How about a change of game?” Tony suggested. “Whoever wins that, is the winner for whatever challenge this is.”

“What do the both of you think you’re good at?” Steve asked.

After a solid two seconds of silence, both Clint and Thor answered in unison, “Bowling!!”

They immediately sprang into action, setting up the system. After that, they both bowled side by side. Clint managed to get three strikes in a row while Thor struggled to keep up his streak. The others were just watching the two enthusiastic figures from the back.

By the end of the game, both Clint and Thor were so into the it they started to forget their surroundings. They were laughing loudly, and kept swinging their right arm, which had the remote control.

Their last round came and both of them were eager to play to their maximum capabilities. After the three second countdown, both of them swung their arms. Clint’s remote control flew out of his hand and crashed onto the wall, while Thor managed to strike, making him the overall winner of the game.

Clint fell to his knees and let out a long groan, while Thor was jumping around in glee. Natasha went to literally pick Clint up.

“Dinner is ready, kids,” Ana smiled at them.

“Ana, I won!” Thor grinned at her.

“Congrats!” she laughed while taking away the empty plate and cups. “Victory feast is below.”

“Alright alright Thor,” Bruce chuckled. “Calm down yeah?”

“Next time,” Clint muttered. “Good work, Thor.”

Tony could feel it easily. He felt the mood shift in Clint and saw beyond the smile he had, that he was actually sad he had lost the game. And Tony didn’t really appreciate the fact that only he had seen this, while the others were trying to calm Thor down.

They all walked down the stairs to the kitchen, where a big spread was waiting for them.

“Clint, you okay?” Tony asked.

“I should ask you that,” Clint smiled.

“No seriously,” Tony stopped and pulled Clint to his side. The rest of them entered the kitchen while the two of them were standing at the entrance. “It’s just a game, Clint.”

Clint realized he couldn’t lie to Tony anymore. He dropped the fake smile and sighed. “Tony, I have a fucking sucky habit. Okay, don’t judge. I can’t just see a game as a game. I take things a little seriously and like to win. It’s me and I can’t do shit about it.”

Tony raised an eyebrow. “You know, I’m not gonna judge because point number one, you’re my friend and number two, nearly everyone takes things seriously and likes to win.”

“Yeah but… I don’t want to feel that way, Tony. I’ve been trying to change myself.” Clint leaned against the wall and shrugged.

“It’s okay to feel the way you always feel, Clint,” Tony smiled. “Just let it out, okay? Anyways, we’re here to enjoy. So, no hard feelings against our big blondie?”

Clint snorted. “Nah. He’s a good friend and it was just a game, I guess.”

Tony gave Clint’s shoulder a squeeze, before both of them entered the kitchen, which was suddenly filled with noise.

“You should try her baked potatoes,” Jarvis was saying to Natasha. “They’re one of the best.”

“My mushroom soup is one of the best!” Ana laughed while scooping out more soup for Steve’s bowl.

Laid out on the table were chicken carbonara, a big bowl of mushroom soup and part of the cappuccino coffee cake. Jarvis and Ana were helping the kids out; Thor and Steve looked very excited to try out the dishes. It was just written all over their faces, which made Tony smile to himself.

Within minutes, they were halfway into their dinner. Clint couldn’t help but take more of the carbonara, much to the glee of Ana. They were all chatting about school and about what had happened in the last semester. Of course, they didn’t go into details about Bruce being bullied by Ross, the six of them chasing his dad, senior lecturer Pierce, out of the school and all the other nonsense that happened because Ana and Jarvis would flip out. They were telling them about how tough their exams were and about their first Uno game together.

When everyone was laughing after picturing Steve breaking the coffee table in their apartment, Howard Stark walked into the kitchen.

All the noise stopped. Not even the sound of cutlery clanging onto the plates was heard. The pleasant atmosphere simply died.

Howard went to the sink to rinse his glass. The glass he had his whiskey in.

Tony visibly stiffened up, and Steve took his hand. Tony’s breathing rate increased. He squeezed Steve’s hand so hard, making him wince. Natasha and the others looked at Tony with worry. This boy was just seconds away from a panic attack.

“What is the meal for today, Jarv?” Howard asked, without facing them.

“Carbonara, mushroom soup and cake,” Jarvis briefly answered.

“I’ll take some later,” Howard said. After rinsing his glass, he wiped it with the cloth that was on the kitchen counter. He was still holding onto the glass when he was walking towards the exit. “Oh and Tony?”

Tony let out a shudder. He took in deep breath before asking, “yeah?”

“Your friends are brave,” Howard said, his back facing his son. “I like them.”

With that, he walked out.

The tense atmosphere in the kitchen melted away right after that. Tony released his grip from Steve’s hand, and simply looked at his food.

“You okay?” Clint asked him.

“Yeah… yeah… it’s just that,” Tony stammered. “It’s… My dad has never liked anything I did or had. This is the first time he said he likes something that’s mine, and that’s you guys.” He had a very subtle smile on his face.

Clint could not chew his food anymore. He was torn between feeling glad for Tony and feeling sad because of how much Tony was neglected. Natasha and Thor were just staring at Tony while Bruce let out a sigh. Steve gave Tony’s back a pat before picking up his cutlery. The others followed suit and soon, they completed their meals.

 

...

 

“Nights guys,” Bruce yawned. “See you all tomorrow.”

He shut his room door while Natasha and Clint sauntered to their room.

“Jarvis, prepare the cars. We’re probably gonna take a drive tomorrow,” Tony smiled.

“Will that be all, Master Stark?” he asked.

“Yes Jarvis,” Tony let out a yawn. “Oh, and if I don’t wake up on time, you know the drill.”

Jarvis ruffled his hair and gave him a knowing smile.

When Tony shut the door and changed into his PJs, Steve was already asleep. And Tony let out a chuckle when he heard Steve snore.

 


	2. Day 2: The Race

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On day 2, Tony and friends go for a little racing, hang out together and basically have as much fun as they could. Also, Jarvis sees Steve kissing Tony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I hope you all are having a good day. Thank you so much for your support!   
> Also I was listening to Malibu by Miley Cyrus while editing this chapter and it simply added to the effect. Gosh I love that song!  
> Here's the next chapter and I hope you guys will love it! Once again, thank you.  
> Happy Reading!! :)
> 
> **There's mentions and description of PTSD in this chapter, and mentions of bullying**

Tony vaguely registered a soothing British voice calling him. He brushed it off and turned to the other side of the bed to continue sleeping.

“Oh Master Stark,” Jarvis sighed. “I hate doing this drill. Always involves a lot of screaming.”

Jarvis walked out of the room, passing by Steve, who was wiping his hair. Steve quickly slipped into his jeans and a round-neck shirt. He looked at Tony sprawled across the bed and smiled.

He remembered Tony screaming in the middle of the night, telling his dad to not hit him. Steve had jerked awake and had calmed his boyfriend down. He hugged a crying a Tony and kept whispering reassurances to him. Both of them went to bed after that, with Tony being the little spoon.

“Oh God, Jarvis?” Steve asked when he saw what he was carrying.

“This is the drill, Master Rogers,” Jarvis sighed.

He raised both his hands, which had two air horns. His face scrunched up and he blew it. The noise was deafening; it even made Steve jump despite him knowing what was about to happen.

Tony screamed and jumped up, bouncing on the bed. His hair was extremely messy, and his eyes were wide open.

“The drill, Master Stark,” Jarvis rolled his eyes. He left the room, leaving Steve to chuckle while leaning against the door of the walk-in closet.

“Yeah free entertainment I know, I know,” Tony scoffed.

He slowly got out of bed and went to the closet to get his clothes out.

“Is he awake?” Natasha entered the room. “Finally! Tony, what’s the plan?”

“Driving,” Tony replied while rubbing his eyes.

He trudged past her, mumbling something about racing.

 

…

 

“Here are the car keys,” Jarvis said. “Drive safely, kids.” He then went back to the kitchen to help his wife Ana with the cleaning up.

Tony ran to the entrance, his breakfast and an extra dose of coffee giving him full energy. The others jogged behind him, and their jaws dropped once they reached the entrance.

Tony was talking about driving to this place where they sold fresh strawberries when they were having breakfast. He said his family had a couple of cars and they could take two for their rides. He also said he knew this extremely affordable yet delicious burger place that was near the beach. That was where they were going to have lunch later.

So, when Tony said cars, the others expected a normal, minimalistic kind of family car. When they came face-to-face with two Audi A5 convertibles, they lost their shit.

“Dude, this is sick!” Clint gasped. He walked around the silver one, touching the shiny skin and marveling at it.

“Why are there two? We can probably share one, if we put Clint on one of our laps,” Natasha chuckled.

“Ha ha so funny Nat,” Clint rolled his eyes.

“We’re gonna go racing,” Tony tossed both the car keys up and caught it. “I’m driving the black beauty. Who wants the gorgeous silver?”

The others were looking at the car, not knowing what to say. They’ve been here for only over a day and they already felt like they were soaked into the rich life.

“I’ll take it,” Natasha suddenly said, breaking the silence.

The guys turned to look at her. “You sure?” Tony smirked.

“Yeah, I like to race plus I have a driver’s license,” Natasha rolled her eyes.

Tony tossed the keys to her. “Okay, two with me, two with Nat.”

Thor happily skipped to where Natasha was while Clint sided with Tony.

“For a change,” Steve winked at Tony, while taking Natasha’s side. Bruce then walked to Tony.

They quickly sat in the car and adjusted themselves.

“Nat, the strawberry place is like in the middle of the way-”

“Yeah Tony, I know. It’s just a couple of miles away from Santa Monica,” Natasha assured him.

Tony gave her a thumbs up and started his engine. Bruce put on his seatbelt, as he was right beside the driver’s seat, while Clint was chilling at the back.

“Belt, Clint,” Tony narrowed his eyes. Clint sighed and buckled it.

Once the other car’s passengers were secure and ready, Tony pressed down on the gas pedal. Within seconds, he was speeding at the bends, with Natasha following right behind him. Both the cars sped out of the gates, startling the security guards.

And within a matter of seconds, they were on the highway.

“Can’t we overtake them, friend Natasha?!” Thor screamed in excitement.

“We can,” Natasha replied calmly. She patiently drove behind them for a while.

“We better reach there first, Tony!” Clint grinned. He kept looking behind, to make sure Nat and the others were still in second place. “They’re gonna fucking overtake! Do something!!”

Tony chuckled and waved at Nat when she drove right beside him. Her hair was flying wildly and she waved back. She then overtook Tony’s car.

“Fuck no!” Clint screamed this time. “Cut across! Go any way just do it!”

“Clint, I can’t go any way! We’ll fall off the cliff if I go right!” Tony rolled his eyes while Bruce let out a laugh.

Bruce then looked to his right and gasped at the beauty of the sea. It was clear blue and was already shining, even though the sun wasn’t that high yet. He was entranced by the view, and didn’t know he was holding his breath in.

“I know a short cut,” Tony smiled. He slowed down to make a U-turn, much to the frustration of Clint. He then went on the opposite lane and made a right turn. “Quit pouting Clint, we’ll be reaching there first.”

In the other car, Thor was the first one to realize that Tony wasn’t following them anymore. He was sitting behind and started to freak out when he didn’t see the black car.

“Where are they?” he asked Natasha and Steve.

Steve’s heart skipped a beat. He looked at the side view mirror, in case the car had flown off the cliff. But there would have been a sound and they would have known.

“Knowing Clint _and_ Tony, they definitely took a short cut,” Natasha sighed. They continued cruising down the road, with Thor telling Natasha that they have to reach first. Steve simply sat back and enjoyed the wind.

 

…

 

Natasha reached the road side shop after a few more minutes. She stopped the car and killed the engine. The three of them got out and were startled when they heard Clint’s voice.

“We have been waiting for about 3 minutes,” he smiled smugly. “But the short cut was horrible. So much of bumps and a fucking bee nearly stung me.”

Tony snorted at that. He and Bruce were seated on the hood and were grinning at the others.

“Seems like you guys won,” Steve smiled. “What’s the reward?”

“You three will have to make breakfast for us tomorrow,” Tony said. He jumped off the hood and walked to where the guy selling the strawberries was seated. “We’ll talk to Ana about that later.”

Thor sighed and muttered, “next time,” to himself.

“Hi boy,” the shop vendor grinned.

“Hello,” Tony smiled. “I’ll get uh, this one box.”

“Si, si, gracias,” the shop vendor took the cash Tony had handed him and smiled.

Tony took the box full of strawberries, and the others followed him. “We’re driving a couple of meters down.”

All of them boarded the cars and they drove off, waving at the shop vendor, who was waving back with a grin.

After a ten second ride down, both the cars were parked in front of one another. The 6 of them were sitting together, closely, at the edge of the cliff, shaking their legs. They were passing around the box full of strawberries while chatting with one another. Natasha looked down, and the height didn’t even seem to faze her. She simply shook her legs and looked at the sea.

“These are really fresh, friend Tony,” Thor licked his lips. “And that vendor seemed quite nice.”

“People around here are okay, I guess,” Tony shrugged.

“What’s the plan for tomorrow anyway?” Clint asked. “And are we visiting the Santa Monica pier?”

“Yes Clint. I mean, duh,” Tony laughed. “And the plan for tomorrow is pretty simple. In the morning, we’ll chill at my house and then, maybe, hit the beach for a while. In the evening, all 6 of us have a reservation booked at this fancy restaurant.”

The others turned quickly to face Tony once he said the plan.

“What?” he asked.

“So that’s why you asked us to pack our presentation clothes…” Clint thought. “You know, I’ve never had a three-course fancy meal before.”

“I think most of us haven’t,” Steve smiled. “Thanks Tony.”

“No, it’s okay,” Tony waved it off. “It’s gonna be fun with you guys.”

The six of them then ate the strawberries in silence. They were looking at the splendid view of the sea and were enjoying the breeze. Even though the silence was comfortable, Clint didn’t want it to last.

“Anyone knows a good joke?” he asked.

Thor answered almost immediately, “Yes friend Clint, I do!”

“Go on,” Bruce said.

“How do you spell i-cup,” Thor was grinning.

“I-C-U-P,” Steve answered.

“Friend Steve, that’s absolutely disgusting! I thought you had feelings for friend Tony?” Thor’s face scrunched up.

Steve raised an eyebrow at him. “I spelled what you said. What does this have to do with me feeling things for Tony?”

“No you don’t get it!” Thor said. “You spelled it as I-C-U-P. What else does it sound like?”

“I see you pee,” Natasha let out a chuckle.

There was a moment of silence. And then, “That was the joke?” Steve deadpanned.

“You mean you didn’t get it?” Tony was laughing hard. The others were laughing too.

“No!” Steve rolled his eyes. “But good attempt.”

“Oh, so you must have a better joke, Rogers,” Natasha said it in a sassy tone. “Come on, share it.”

Steve pretended to look like he was thinking. And then, he turned to the others. “You know what’s the biggest joke?”

“What?” the others asked in unison.

“My life,” Steve sighed.

No one said a thing for a few seconds. They were just looking at him, with not much of an expression written on their faces. The only sound was the occasional passing of the cars and the wind blowing past them.

“We’re a part of your life too, you know, so are you calling us a joke too?” Tony thought out loud.

“Such a good friend,” Thor grumbled to himself.

And all of a sudden, Clint burst out laughing. “That’s a good joke!”

“You guys are so lame,” Natasha scoffed.

“What you have a good joke then?” Bruce laughed.

“Yeah,” Clint had a smug smile. “It’s your dance, right?”

Natasha turned sharply turn to look at Clint. She adjusted herself and gave Clint’s shin a kick. As he was sitting right beside her, the kick landed hard. Clint howled in pain and fell back, while the others were torn between laughing and helping Clint up.

“Okay, no hard feelings,” Tony sighed. “He’s just joking!”

“I know, my kick was pretty light-hearted too,” Natasha smirked and helped Clint up, whose face was red like the strawberry he was eating.

“That wasn’t light-hearted,” Steve whispered to himself.

The six of them sat there for the next hour, and finished up the box of strawberries. They then kept talking about absolutely random things, like having a spring cleaning session in their apartment. Of course, Steve knew this wouldn’t happen. With how hectic a semester could get; spring cleaning wasn’t a luxury they could afford. Plus most of them would get lazy, so it was just impossible. 

They also talked about them speeding down the highway, as if the road was built just for them. Steve simply wanted them to be safe, while Tony was in it more for the thrill. But he assured Steve that Natasha and himself were good drivers. They hoped they wouldn't get a speeding ticket. But Bruce laughed at that and pointed out the speed at which both cars were going. Clint and Tony brushed that off. Then they sighed and relaxed, feeling blissful in each other's company.

“So, what about your stuff you do outside school?” Bruce asked Clint.

“I’m pairing up with Natasha for the dance competition. And also, there’s an archery competition coming up. Man, I’m gonna be so busy.” Clint stretched.

“You really did throw yourself into the activities,” Bruce noted.

“It’ll be nice to have all these in my portfolio,” Clint smiled.

“Alright guys,” Tony yawned. “Let’s go for lunch. It’s just that down there, near the seaside, a nice burger place.”

“We can play badminton later right?” Thor asked with an innocent grin.

“Yeah, in the evening,” Tony replied.

All six of them got up. Natasha and Thor had to help Clint up, as his legs were shaking. Steve helped Tony up and they all slowly walked to the cars.

“Are we racing again?” Thor asked.

“I guess we’ll find out!” Tony said excitedly and ran to his car.

He and Bruce jumped into the car and Clint scrambled to get in. Tony started the engine and winked at the other three, who were looking at them in the car with their lips pursed.

Tony stepped on the gas pedal and turned the car around, speeding off. The other three standing near their silver Audi could hear Clint’s “woohoo” fading away.

 

…

 

Tony and company had reached the burger place in record time. The other three joined them 5 minutes later.

The burger place was situated near the sea, and provided shade, food, drinks and an alternate place to socialize for their patrons. Tony had done some research prior to the trip. He got to know about this place, and that they had the best burgers in town. Their most famous dish was the Juicy Italian Cheeseburger.

After getting seats for six, all of them studied the menu for over five minutes before ordering. Food quickly filled the space on their joined tables, and the six of them who were so famished, began devouring the burgers.

They were nearly finishing up their burgers when a crazy idea hit Clint. His face lit up and it really looked like he had a lit bulb above his head.

“We should hit the beach,” he grinned.

“With jeans?” Steve scoffed. “No way.”

“I think we should,” Tony nodded his head. He took a quick sip from his milkshake and started to speak again. “Learn how to live flexibly, Steve!”

“Tony, do you have any idea how heavy my jeans can get once it’s wet?” Steve asked, looking at Tony with eyes that begged him to understand where he was coming from.

“Why would you wear jeans in such a hot weather?” Thor took the last bite off his cheeseburger and asked. “You have to wear shorts like how we all wore them!”

Steve looked around the table and realized that he was the odd one out. Even Natasha was wearing something shorter than what he was wearing.

“Fine,” Steve sighed. “I’ll just get wet.”

“You let out a dirty joke, and I will sock you in the jaw,” Tony warned Clint, who then proceeded to shut his mouth. He gave a shit eating grin to Tony.

“Alright, let’s go,” Tony said once everyone seemed to be done with their lunch. The rest of them stood up with their milkshakes in their hands, while Bruce was still eating. “Bring it along!” Tony smiled.

The six of them left the eatery after paying and walked down to the beach. They then chose a shady spot and placed their items down. Natasha kicked out her sandals and ran to the shore, with Clint skipping behind her. Steve, who was still folding up his jeans, was dragged to the shore by an enthusiastic Thor.

“I’ll eat this first.” Bruce waved his burger at Tony.

“Sure,” Tony smiled, before jogging away to join the others.

“Come friend Tony!” Thor shouted. “Let us merrily walk into the water!”

Tony scratched his head and looked slightly uncomfortable. “Uh, no Thor. I’m more of the shallow water type of guy.”

“Come on Tony it’s gonna be fun!” Clint threw his arms into the air.

“Uh, no guys it’s fine. I’ll be here,” Tony walked to the shore and let the warm foamy water wash his legs.

Clint then thought it’ll be fun to push Tony down and jump onto him, in the water. He crept up behind him and did a countdown to himself. And then, he dashed down to where Tony’s back was.

The next thing Clint knew, he’s swallowed plenty of seawater, alone. He looked up at the others. “What the fuck?”

“Boundaries, Clint,” Bruce’s calm voice answered Clint’s query.

Bruce had pulled Tony out of the way just in time. But that had cost him his burger. The burger which was wrapped around a paper, was soaked in seawater and was bobbing about at the shore.

“That has to be salty,” Steve observed.

“My burger didn’t have much salt anyways,” Bruce shrugged.

Tony threw Bruce an amused look. “I like that sass, Bruce. Please bring that out more in the apartment!” That earned Tony a smile from Bruce.

“You know Steve, I really don’t see why you needed to fold up your jeans,” Clint was smirking. And a smirking Clint was _always_ a dangerous Clint.

Steve was about to ask what Clint meant when his right hand was pulled by a great force. And suddenly, he found himself running deeper into the water with Thor. Steve then lost his balance and fell face flat onto the water. Thor and Clint kept splashing water at him to soak him even more.

“A bunch of kids, I swear to God,” Natasha was laughing at them.

“Thanks Bruce,” Tony said softly. “I’ll get you another burger.”

“Nah, I think I’ll eat whatever Ana has for us,” Bruce said. “I saw you got uncomfortable when they spoke about water. I came to your defense and yeah, that happened.”

Tony kept looking into the horizon. He spoke after a few seconds. “It’s something my dad did when I was younger. I don’t remember much. But I know it gave me a fear of deep water. I can stand shallow ones, shower is alright. But I can’t do bathtub and deep water. I lose it there and then.”

Bruce sighed and managed to contain his anger. He really adored his friend and couldn’t stand what his dad did to him. He really wished he could report Howard Stark, but Tony wouldn’t allow that. Too much of unwanted press attention would come his way. And Tony hated that.

He gave Tony’s back a pat and walked away to where all their belongings were.

“You’ve got quite the attention here,” Natasha observed. She was standing beside Tony and they both were watching Clint and Thor torturing Steve.

There was a small crowd gathered behind them, slightly further away. Some men who were among the crowd, were taking pictures of Tony.

“Yeah, word must have spread that the Starks have moved here,” Tony huffed. “Don’t bother Nat. We can have fun ignoring them.” He dismissed them and turned back to the water.

Natasha smiled at that. “I think we need to help Steve.”

“Nah, the tides have turned,” Tony smiled, his eyes full of admiration for Steve. He was now pushing both Clint and Thor into the sea, and was walking back to the shore, fully soaked.

“And I bet that pun was intended,” Natasha raised her eyebrow at Tony, who grinned back at her.

“Look at you,” Tony laughed at Steve.

Steve was visibly shivering. “It’s cold and I hate it.” He said with gritted teeth. The smile on both Tony’s and Natasha’s faces vanished.

“Hey Steve, I didn’t mean to-”

Steve walked away before Tony could say another word. He walked past Bruce and didn’t bother picking up his milkshake.

“Steve!” Tony called out. “Come on, it was just for fun!”

“You better get to him and drive home first,” Natasha gave Tony’s shoulder a nudge. “I’ll get the others.”

Tony didn’t need to be told twice. He ran up and reached Steve, who was shivering despite the hot sun hanging above him.

“Steve,” Tony grabbed Steve’s arm.

“What?” Steve snapped, surprising Tony.

“I uh… I wanted to drop you home,” Tony said softly. “You can get dried there and rest.”

Steve’s face softened. He nodded his head, and both of them ended up walking to the car.

At the seaside, Clint couldn’t understand why Steve and Tony were already going home. He and Thor really wanted to enjoy themselves under the sun, but they couldn’t. They decided to come back another day. And Bruce chose this opportunity to give Clint a lecture about personal space.

Tony and Steve were already more than halfway into their journey. Tony couldn’t help but wonder what the heck caused Steve to feel this much of cold despite it being summer. Steve didn’t look happy in the water and when he was pushing Clint and Thor into the sea, it didn’t look like he was getting a playful revenge, but more of trying to get himself away from them and the ocean itself.

Steve wasn’t looking at Tony or didn’t attempt to have any conversation. He kept looking at the cliffs they were driving past, while hugging himself tightly. The wind was beating past him and he was drying quickly, but he didn’t look happy. If anything, he looked really miserable.

“Uh Tony?” Steve asked in a voice that was barely above a whisper. “Could you… do something about the wind? Like, d…drive slower or something. _Please_.”

Tony, being a genius, understood what his boyfriend exactly wanted. He leaned forward and pressed a button, causing the retractable hardtop to move. Within seven seconds, the wind and direct sunlight got cut, and the car became an enclosed space. Tony turned on the heater in the car to a low level so that Steve wouldn’t feel too cold.

“Thank you,” Steve whispered.  

“So… Wanna talk about it?” Tony asked.

“I just…” Steve’s voice cracked, and he was trying to swallow the lump he had. “I just hate the cold, Tony.” He whispered.

Tony didn’t say anything. He wanted Steve to go on. So, he kept his eyes on the road, but his ears were so ready to listen to his boyfriend.

“It reminds me of winter, which is associated with my parents’ death,” Steve sighed shakily. “My dad died when I was four. My ma worked and worked to keep us afloat. There was once, during winter, I was walking down the street to get my ma a newspaper. A few other boys threw cold water at me and mocked me when I screamed. From that day on, I hated the cold. I just…. I can’t… breathe….”

Tony turned the car to the right, out of the road and stepped on the brakes, hard. He activated the hazard lights while Steve rushed out of the car. He slid down and ended up on the sandy ground. Tony too, got out of the car.

“Steve?” Tony called out. He ran to the passenger side and knelt down beside a now crying Steve.

“Tony?” Steve let out a sob. “They bullied me Tony! Always threw cold water on me during winter. Made fun of how skinny I looked. Tripped me in school. Snatched my lunch and threw it away. Hated me…”

Tony felt his heart crush at what he was hearing. He moved closer to Steve, to give him comfort but also gave him a bit of space to recover.

“And then my ma died. And I was all alone, Tony,” Steve continued. “But Bucky was there and bless his soul, he made sure I wasn’t bullied again. By high school I had buffed up slightly. But… but… some wounds just can’t heal.”

“Steve,” Tony said. “That part of your life is over. It’s done. And sometimes it’s okay for the past to come creeping back up, it happens to everyone. But you’re stronger than this Steve. You gotta pick yourself up and go on with life. Also, why didn’t you tell us about you and the relationship you have with cold?”

Steve lifted his head up so that he could wipe his tears away. “I was scared to open up to all of you. So I delayed it and now I’m paying.”

“Well,” Tony smiled. “You’re not paying a thing. Now we know, and we will not trigger a thing.”

“Please don’t distant yourselves away from me?” Steve asked. He had a little pout on his face.

Tony raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t desert me when I had my nightmares. Nor did you push Bruce away when he wasn’t talking to us. You have my word, we won’t push you away.”

Steve smiled an innocent smile and Tony hugged him. Steve rested his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder and sighed contentedly. Tony gave Steve’s forehead a kiss and helped him up. After settling down, they drove back to the mansion in peace.

 

…

 

It was 6pm and the song Mr. Blue Sky was being blasted in the room Steve and Tony shared.

Tony stepped out of their walk-in closet and started to dance like an enthusiastic drunk in the club. He clapped his hands and wiggled his butt.

“ _Sun is shinin’ in the sky, there ain’t a cloud in sight_ ,” Tony sang.

Steve, who was sitting at the edge of the bed, let out a snort. Tony danced his way to where Steve was, and wiggled his butt in front of his face, and then made a 180-degree jump, and shimmied.

“Come on Rogers!” Tony panted.

He then did a little ballet move, followed by a series of body shakes that had Steve laughing till his belly began to hurt.

“Nice lap dance,” Clint smirked.

“Whoa fuck!” Tony shouted when he heard Clint. He scrambled to his phone and switched off the music. “And no Clint, that wasn’t a lap dance. I was trying to cheer Steve up.”

“Sorry to interrupt but I need to borrow the love of your life for a while,” Clint said.

“Right, I’ll be in the walk-in,” Tony said. He pulled shut the glass doors and began rummaging around the drawers for something.

“Steve,” Clint began. “I’m so sorry for just now.”

“Me too,” Thor added. He looked like a kicked puppy, as he walked into the room.

“We didn’t really know about you and cold, plus, we forgot this thing called boundary,” Clint said. “Sorry buddy.”

“We hope you forgive us, friend Steve. We didn’t mean to give you a hard time,” Thor sighed.

Steve smiled at them and nodded his head. “Just… don’t treat me differently.”

“Why would we?” Thor asked. “You’re our good friend! What’s part of you is a part of you and when we forge friendships, we accept you as a whole, not as a part. So please do not fret.”

Steve’s eyes watered as he nodded his head. Both Thor and Clint then proceeded to hug Steve, who laughed and hugged them back.

“You should join us, friend Steve!” Thor winked and left the room.

“For?”

“The match of a lifetime. The game of the century!” Clint said dramatically. “Basically, Thor and I are playing Badminton and you and Tony should watch us.”

After Steve agreed to watch the match, Clint dashed down the stairs and ran out of the mansion to the grass patch. Two workers were setting up the net, with Jarvis overseeing them. There was a bench near the courts, and Natasha and Bruce were seated on it.

“You two should do a warm-up,” Bruce suggested.

Clint and Thor decided to jog around the field for a while.

“So you and Barton,” Bruce started. “How did you guys get to know one another?”

Natasha smiled. “Oh Bruce, it goes a long time back.” She reminisced. “My parents died in Russia due to a fire. But I was safe. I was able to get to my mother’s friend’s house in Idaho. I saw her as my aunt, and called her that. So, I was five and went to the States and it was only a couple of years since the Cold War had ended. I had other kids bullying me because of my accent and because I was from Russia. My aunt’s son, even he called me all sorts of names and wanted me out of the house.”

Bruce sighed at what he heard. He hated it when someone behaved like how Natasha’s “cousin” did.

“One day, the son and his friends rounded me at the corner street, where no one was. Clint was one of them. They were going to bash me up. I gave up and was so ready to take the hits. And then, it was as if some miracle had happened. Or he must have seen me give up. He used a slingshot and a couple of stones to chase his own friends away. He gave me his hand and I took it,” Natasha smiled, and tears slowly gathered in her eyes.

Bruce turned to look at Clint doing jumping jacks with Thor, who was jumping around messily.

“We’ve been friends ever since, and best friends after Clint didn’t care about what others said, but hung out with me. I was thinking if we should just be good friends. But then prom came, and he asked me to dance with him. And I realized I had fallen for him; and so did he.” Natasha wiped away her tears and let out a chuckle. “That’s how we met, Bruce.”

Bruce smiled at her and gave her shoulder a pat. “That’s really sweet. I mean… yeah, that’s nice to hear. I’m so glad Barton decided to help you instead of bully you. That’s something.”

“Yeah,” Natasha said as if in a daze. “He can be really stubborn and is very competitive. But deep down he’s a good guy.”

“Typical Barton,” Bruce chuckled, along with Natasha.

They shifted closer when Steve and Tony joined them.

“Steve, you okay?” Natasha asked him.

“Yeah, thanks Nat and Bruce,” Steve smiled.

“And the game shall begin!” Jarvis announced loudly, grabbing all their attention. “Master Barton and Master Odinson are going to compete. The max score is only eleven, because of time constraint, and because my wife Ana has prepared delicious dinner for you all!”

The lot of them laughed at that.

“This is gonna go down in flames!” Clint screamed and served. Jarvis scurried out of their way.

Thor managed to hit the shuttlecock back to Clint at ease. They were running around, hitting it back to each other. The game was going smoothly, until Thor decided that it was enough. He used the forehand smash technique, hard, taking Clint completely by surprise.

When Clint couldn’t hit it up on time, he sighed dramatically. “How can he smash it!!!!?” Clint shouted.

“Master Barton,” Jarvis cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow, looking professional. “That is a valid move and at this point, Master Odinson has one and you, nil.”

Clint huffed and got ready to play again. And the heated game went on for the next half-an-hour, with Clint and Thor taking leads multiple times.

“Okay!” Jarvis announced. “The last round! We are currently in a draw!”

Thor served this time around, with his tongue sticking out slightly. Clint was still going on enthusiastically. He hit the shuttlecock hard, sending back to Thor. Thor was also used to receiving the shuttlecock through the opponent’s forehand smash technique. So it wasn’t difficult for him, but for Clint, well, he absolutely hated that technique.

And suddenly, Tony pointed at the sky and said, “Woah, look at that.”

The four of them sitting on the bench looked up. The sky was a mixture of cobalt blue and midnight blue, and the millions of stars scattered across it looked like fairy dust. The orange glow from the sun set was slowly fading away. And a white streak of light was flying past them and was headed into the horizon.

“It’s a shooting star! Make a wish!” Tony exclaimed. He jumped up and was already running across the field. The rest of them followed suit, losing interest in the game.

“Where are they running to?” Clint asked. He gave the shuttlecock a nice blow.

Thor, who was also distracted by them, didn’t see where the shuttlecock was going. He missed it and it fell inside his court. And Clint was declared the winner.

“Hey Tony!” Steve exclaimed and grabbed his boyfriend. They stopped at the edge of the cliff and watched the shooting star disappear completely into the horizon.

“What did you wish for?” Tony asked him.

“To be with you forever,” Steve whispered.

He then pulled Tony to his side and gave his forehead a kiss. Tony wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and rested his head on his chest. Both of them were standing there and were staring into the horizon. Tony closed his eyes and enjoyed the summer breeze kissing his face.

Clint had placed an arm around Natasha and was standing there, wishing he had more time to look at the shooting star. Bruce and Thor were kicking the grass, and Thor was lamenting about how he would have won if he wasn’t so careless.

Steve gave Tony’s head another soft kiss, and Tony already felt safe in his arms.

What they didn’t know was that Jarvis was standing right behind them and had seen Steve kissing Tony. Also, he wasn’t sure what to feel about that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's Jarvis exactly worried about?  
> You can leave a comment if you have feedback to give. Thank you! :)


	3. Day 3: The Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and his friends prepare to go for the dinner and Howard hits someone. Later on, Steve and Tony get some action...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Thank you for your support for this story so far! I was really busy and that's why the update was quite late, so for that, I'm really sorry.  
> I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter and the story.  
> Happy reading! PS, this is my first time posting a smut here, please bare with me haha!
> 
> **There's a light level of violence in this chapter**  
> ***There is smut/sex in this chapter***

“Jesus,” Natasha grimaced. “What the hell is in this?”

“I’m not sure,” Steve replied. He was busy whisking fours eggs in a bowl. “Who made that?”

“Thor made that pot of coffee,” Natasha sighed. “You try it.”

Steve placed the bowl down and took a sip. His face scrunched up. “Boy that’s horrible.” He placed the coffee pot down and went to rinse his tongue. “Thor, what did you add in this buddy?” He asked once Thor entered the kitchen.

“I added sugar and the powder, just like how we do it in our apartment,” Thor shrugged. He tried the coffee and nearly dropped the pot. “I apologize friends. I think I may have poured salt in this instead of sugar.”

Natasha and Steve turned to look at one another.

“Now my palate’s fucked up,” he whispered to Natasha, who smiled.

“It’s okay,” Natasha sighed. “Thor, pour this and make a fresh batch.”

Thor immediately sprang into action.

Steve got back to making his French toasts while Natasha prepared to fry some bacon strips.

Natasha waited for the pan to get slightly warm. “So, how’s things with you and Tony?”

After adding some cinnamon powder, Steve turned to look at her. “Things are fine. We’re okay actually. Why do you ask?”

“When the hell are you going to ask him out officially, Rogers?” Natasha got straight to her point. She placed the first few bacon strips on the pan and it began to sizzle.

“Soon, Nat,” Steve sighed. “Like, we just got started. Let’s take it slow.”

“Don’t be too slow,” Natasha raised an eyebrow.

“Of course not!” Steve said. “I mean, I gotta bring him out once we get back to Boston. I gotta research on the places I can bring him there.”

Natasha let out a snort. “Just ask me or Jan. We’ve gone out and explored the region already.” Once she said that, Steve threw her a strange look. “What? Where do you think I go on the days I get back late? Also, where do you think Jan gets all her super good-looking clothes from? It’s all in exploring, Rogers.”

Steve took out another pan and spread butter on it. Once it got warm enough, he dipped a slice of bread into the egg mixture he did and placed it onto the pan. “So that’s where you’ve been. I always thought you went for dance practice.”

Natasha laughed. “Gosh you boys are more innocent than you look.”

Steve was about to counter that when Thor walked to them with a freshly brewed pot of coffee. “Try this, friends!” he said enthusiastically.

Both of them tried it and gave it the green light.

“Thor, you make better coffee than my own boyfriend,” Steve chuckled.

“Say, did I actually hear that? Gosh Rogers, I’m so hurt!” Tony said. He faked a shocked expression, as he walked in with Clint and Bruce.

“Gosh it smells good here,” Ana cooed as she walked in behind the boys. “You guys make great chefs!”

“This is just breakfast!” Steve laughed.

Ana went to the stove and grinned at what she saw. There were French toasts on plates with a beautiful color, and bacon strips looking crispy and fine. There were fresh looking pancakes too, stacked on top of one another. That was made by Thor, who said he had used a secret recipe, which was his mother's.

“Tony’s dad likes scrambled eggs,” Ana said. She was already taking out a pan to fry some. “I’ll make them.”

“No way,” Clint jumped in. “Punishment is punishment. They gotta cook the breakfast! Ana, let them do it.”

“I shall, since I’m free!” Thor grinned. He took the pan and was already preparing the eggs.

Within an hour, breakfast was prepared. All of them sat down on the huge dining table in the kitchen itself, near the balcony doors. It was a huge spread, and Ana was so proud of the kids as they had managed to cook for over ten people.

Tony took a few French toasts and pancakes. He dipped them into maple syrup and was immediately in bliss. Steve grinned at his boyfriend’s reaction. Bruce was in love with the crispy bacon strips, while Thor was happily eating as much as he could.

“Gosh, the coffee is good,” Clint grinned.

“Ah, you’re welcome,” Thor nudged at Clint, and Clint nearly choked on the bite of French toast he took. He really hadn’t expected Thor to have been the one to make the coffee.

The lot of them continued eating and were talking about how they were expecting the next semester to be.  Clint was sharing about how he knew his semester was going to be slightly relaxed, and that the new modules were actually his favorite. Natasha and Bruce remained neutral, and said that the Science school was full of surprises, so they didn’t want to jump into conclusions. Thor was more excited because he could focus on the technical aspect of theatre, while Steve was happy with his next semester modules, while Tony felt like his elective might kill them.

“You put theatre studies as one of your choices?!” Clint laughed.

“I thought of trying!” Tony defended himself in a high-pitched voice. “Thor, if I get that, you’ll help me out right, buddy?”

“Of course friend Tony, I will,” Thor assured him.

“Fingers crossed that I won’t get theatre stuff,” Tony said. He stood up and went to the sink to wash his plate. “I mean, it’s like, my third choice!”

Clint let out a snort while bringing his plate to the sink.  Soon, everyone was done with their breakfast and were crowding around the sink. Tony was leaning against the kitchen counter, and was watching his friends trying to get the dishes done.

That was when Howard Stark decided to enter.

Again, all the laughter died down. Tony’s smile just fell off his face. Howard took a plate and filled it up with food. He sat down at the dining table and started to eat.

Everyone else at the sink quickly finished their job there, and were just about to leave the kitchen.

“The food is good today, Jarvis,” Howard commented. “Who made this?”

“A few of master Stark’s friends,” Jarvis replied politely while pouring Howard a mug of coffee.

“Good cooking talents,” Howard let out a laugh. “Something to back them up.”

A sudden memory rocked Tony from the inside out. He silently slipped out of the kitchen, managing to keep his tears at bay.

“Tony, good morning!” Maria Stark said. She pulled her son towards her. “It’s good to see you up this early.” She ruffled his hair and realized Tony didn’t even smile at her comment. “What’s up Tony?”

Tony shook his head. “Nothing mom. Just… just a memory.”

“What memory?” his mom asked him.

Tony’s eyes welled up as he thought about it. “Do you remember, mom? Once you and me cooked dad breakfast and he tossed the plate away and made us throw away everything we did?”

There was a flicker of emotion that crossed Maria’s face. It was as if the opening of an old wound caused her to flinch. She then pushed all of it away by putting a smile on her face. “Oh Anthony…” she sighed. Her left hand was caressing Tony’s right cheek. “That’s something you should never hang on to, son. Just forget it like as if, it was some sort of a worst nightmare.”

Of course, Tony wasn’t satisfied with her answer. But he nodded his head as he understood and respected his mother’s decision to not talk about this again. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and walked to the kitchen. Tony wiped his tears and ran up to his room. He shut the door and jumped onto the bed.

He grabbed his bolster and pulled the blanket to cover him. He could literally smell Steve on the bed. And he sighed in content and smiled slightly while falling asleep.

…

When Tony woke up, the sun was still shining brightly. He felt really disoriented, and rubbed his eyes. He sat at the edge of the bed, alone. He tried to think back, wondering why he was sleeping and where the heck Steve was.

That was when it hit him. He had a dinner planned for all of them and had reservations. He literally jumped out of his bed and ran out of the room.

He looked down from level two to check if his friends were hanging out in the living room. There was no one. He ran up to the Wii station, to find that empty too. He stood on the stairs and scratched his head. He decided to find for Jarvis.

“Jarvis, there you are!” Tony sighed. He entered the kitchen and saw the wall clock. The time read 11.03am. Tony was asleep for only over three hours. “Where did the others go?”

“We had the same question for you too,” Jarvis replied. He was cleaning the stove. “You simply vanished from the kitchen, and Master Rogers, your beloved, was really worried.”

“Yeah but…” Tony paused, realizing something. “Jarv, you know about us?”

“I saw you two smooching the other day, when the shooting star flew past,” Jarvis replied.

Tony’s face flushed. “And I assume you’re not happy with that. Your tone says so.”

“Only for one reason,” Jarvis turned to face him. “I don’t know Master Rogers, and I don’t want him to affect you like how that Whitney Frost did.”

Tony could only wonder what kind of a reaction Jarvis would have if he told him about Sunset Bain. And then something dawned on him. “Wait. You are worried if Steve might end up hurting me like Frost? But… not… you don’t mind me dating another guy…?”

Jarvis turned sharply to look at Tony. “Master Stark, do I look like an asshole to you?” he spat.

Tony’s eyebrows shot up. “Uh… no but I thought… It’s fine Jarv.”

“You can date anyone, regardless of their gender, Tony,” Jarvis said. “But make sure they don’t hurt you.”

“That’s not in my hands,” Tony shrugged. “Maybe it’s written in my face, to hurt me.” Tony let out a soulless laugh.

“I disagree,” Jarvis smiled. He walked to Tony and placed an arm on his shoulder. “I think you look like someone who is going to be so successful, Tony. Forget Mr. Stark’s words. I think you have potential to be someone better than him.”

It took all of Tony’s willpower to not let the tears reach the surface of his eye. He nodded his head and gave Jarvis a weak smile.

“And in case you’re wondering where your friends and beloved are,” Jarvis said. He walked to the dining table, to pour himself a glass of water. “They’re at the seaside, enjoying themselves. Master Rogers is at the roof top.”

Tony thanked Jarvis and raced up to the last level. Up there, he found Steve examining the rooftop gym. Tony could only wondered how long Steve was up here, killing time.

“Hey,” Tony said.

Steve turned behind, startled. “Hey to you too, sleepyhead.”

“I uh… sorry for suddenly vanishing,” Tony said and smiled sheepishly.

“You could have said something,” Steve sighed. “You scared the fuck out of Ana, Bruce, Clint and even me!” Tony looked away, hating to hear his boyfriend sounding worried. “Anyway, the rest of them decided to hit the beach. I decided to stay here. You can see them by the way. They’re just down there.”

Tony walked across the gym and stopped at the edge. He looked down and saw four figures jumping around the seashore. Tony swore to God that he heard Clint’s girly screams and Thor’s laughter.

“What happened, babe?” Steve asked, while hugging Tony from the back. “Did something happen or were you really sleepy?”

For a split second, Tony wanted to tell him everything, about the bad experience he and his mum had. He just wanted to pour it all out to Steve, cry his heart out. But at the same time, he didn’t want to burden Steve with his problems.

“I was really tired,” Tony said quietly.

There were a couple of wind chimes, made of metal, hanging near the place where Steve and Tony were standing. The warm Malibu wind made them rustle, and that sound was the only sound that was heard for a solid few seconds.

“You’re lying,” Steve said. Tony sighed; sometimes he’s the worst liar to ever exist.

“Fine,” Tony said. “My dad’s words just now, just… I know it was a compliment to you guys, but, I just… got reminded of an old memory. We made breakfast, dad hated it, and threw it all away. I was only… ten when that happened.”

Tony suddenly felt Steve’s muscles contracting. He gulped, knowing Steve just got angry. But he had continued hugging Tony, and Tony simply melted into the warmth.

“One day,” Steve started, with his teeth gritted. “Your dad’s gonna get it from me.”

Tony felt goosebumps form on his skin. But he was just standing there, enveloped by a Steve Rogers.

The summer breeze continued to brush past them. Tony had closed his eyes and had his head on Steve’s chest. And at this moment, a question from the past came creeping back up on Steve’s mind.

“Tony,” he began. “Remember that day, you were naked with Sunset, in your room? Did you two really… have sex?”

Tony choked on his own saliva and opened his eyes. He turned to face Steve, with both his eyebrows raised.

“Noooo,” Tony cried out. “We tried but… but well, she was not into that idea. So we both were just lying down naked. Nope, we didn’t.”

Steve felt himself relax, and sighed a huge sigh of relief. That doubt has been creeping up ever since he saw Tony naked in his room, in the apartment. But he never really asked because firstly, he didn’t want to bring up the memory of Sunset and secondly, he was scared. Okay to be fair, a little scared.

“Steve,” Tony adjusted himself. “I gotta go back down to sort out the reservation stuff. And also to pick out a good suit.”

“I’ll join you in a while, Tony,” Steve smiled. He gave Tony’s forehead a soft kiss, before allowing him to peel away from him.

Tony let out a little giggle, and jogged back to the stairs. He still felt Steve’s cool lips on his forehead. He happily walked down the stairs, thinking about how fun eating at a restaurant with his friends was going to be.

And then he came face-to-face a Howard Stark, who was wearing a suit on this hot afternoon.

“Oh Tony,” Howard shook his head. “I thought your love life was over after what happened with Whitney.”

Tony gulped. He must have seen Steve hugging Tony at the rooftop. Of course, there were security cameras installed everywhere. And how long would it take for Howard to access one of them and look at what his son was up to?

“You sound like you’re blaming me for what happened with Whitney,” Tony said, crossing his arms.

“Look at how far you’ve fallen, Anthony,” Howard shook his head. “Is your life so bad that you have to start dating someone of the same gender?”

Tony sighed. He really didn’t have the energy to argue with his dad. “It’s my wish. I do what I want and I date whoever I want. I have work to do, dad, please step out of my way.”

Howard’s nostrils flared. “I didn’t let Maria give birth to a misfit!!!” he screamed. And he raised his hand to give Tony a tight slap.

And it all happened in a flash. Suddenly there was Jarvis holding Howard’s hand to stop him from giving the slap and Tony was shielded by Steve’s warm body. Even Maria Stark was standing there, protecting her son from her husband.

“Howard,” Maria glared at him. “Just stop it. Cut the bullshit! Stop abusing my son!”

“You shut the fuck up!” Howard shouted at her. He managed to push Jarvis away and walked towards Tony, who had two people being a shield for him.

Howard easily pushed Maria and Steve to the side, and stepped right into Tony’s space. “You’re a fucking joke!” he shouted at Tony.

“Mr. Stark-” Jarvis was about to stop Howard, but was pushed down by him, again.

Howard raised his hand and gave one tight slap. When he realized who he had slapped, he was quite surprised.

Taking the full brunt of the slap was Steve, who had pushed Tony away just in time. He held onto the wall, and his other hand was holding his left cheek, which was turning red.

“You fucking bastard!” Tony shouted. Rage filled his every nerve, and fueled his movements.

Tony stood up and pushed Howard to the ground. He was taken aback by his son’s sudden harsh movements. He kept giving his son a look that was a mixture of a glare and a look of surprise.

“Master Stark no!” Jarvis cried. He then held Tony, and stopped him from giving Howard’s abdomen area a nice kick.

Maria Stark helped Howard up. She forcefully dragged him away from there, slowly going down the stairs. Howard shrugged her off and proceeded to lock himself in his office.

“Master Stark, come on,” Jarvis sighed. Ana, who had just joined them, helped Steve.

“Why the fuck is he like that?” Tony asked, and turned his attention to Steve.

“Alcohol, Master Stark,” Jarvis replied, with a somber tone. “It does things to people and changes them, despite them thinking it’s a way out of their stress and sorrows.”

At this time, Tony thought that this was the first time he ever heard anyone speak about Howard’s stress. It’s not a normal topic that was touched in the Stark household. Of course, Tony understood that his dad was stressed over the company and was having a hard time. But that doesn’t justify him slapping Tony or a guest, who simply wanted to have a good time with Tony.

But really, Tony couldn’t help but wonder what was stressing his dad out so much.

“Steve, you okay?” Tony asked.

“Yeah,” Steve replied. “Nothing new.”

The four of them walked down the stairs, to the kitchen.

“Drink some water, Steve,” Ana offered. Steve took a small sip, still shaky from the tight slap he had just received.

“I’m sorry,” Tony said softly, but it was audible enough for everyone gathered at the kitchen.

Before Jarvis could say something, Steve stepped in. “It’s not your fault.” He brushed back Tony’s hair, and pulled him closer to him.

Ana and Jarvis exchanged a knowing look.

Tony curled his arms around his boyfriend and rested his head on his chest for a while. He closed his eyes, relishing the warmth radiating from Steve’s body.

“Have I told you how much I love the beach?” Clint’s cheerful voice was heard. The others were entering the house after an enjoyable day out.

“We can see, friend Clint,” Thor said loudly.

They all entered the kitchen, looking slightly tanned and sweaty. They brought the smell of the sea back home, along with grains of sand wedged inside their shoes as souvenirs.

Upon entering the kitchen, they saw Steve and Tony hugging and Ana and Jarvis working side by side at the dining table. They could also feel the atmosphere in the kitchen, and knew something was wrong.

“Is everything okay?” Natasha asked, brushing back her seawater soaked hair but now dry, back.

No one replied to her. Tony broke away from Steve, and looked at them, with tears in his eyes. He wiped them away, and nodded his head.

“Jarvis, is there an ice pack here?” Tony asked with a coarse voice.

“Yes Master Stark,” Jarvis replied and immediately went to take one.

By now, it was obvious that Howard Stark had made an appearance, that had turned sour. And Clint felt something snap inside him. He’s honestly had enough with Howard.

“Tony?” Maria Stark called. She entered the kitchen and went straight to her son. “Look, that man is locked in his office. Just let him be, okay?” she then turned to Steve. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that.” She apologized, and tears formed in her eyes.

She took the ice pack from Jarvis and placed it on Steve’s left cheek. Her soft lips wobbled, holding back the many words she wished she could tell someone.

Natasha, Clint, Bruce and Thor jogged to look at Steve, not knowing the situation could get this bad.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. And a tear drop rolled down hey eye.

“It’s okay,” Steve replied, not being able to control his own tears.

Steve then held onto the ice pack, and Maria let go. She wiped her tears and turned to Ana. “I’ll be back for dinner.” She gave her son a kiss and walked out of the kitchen.

“What the fuck happened while we were out?” Clint asked.

“A lot of things,” Steve replied, and pointed at his cheek.

“I think I lost my patience,” Clint gritted his teeth. He was just about to leave the kitchen when Tony grabbed his arm.

“He’s in his office, I wouldn’t advise what you’re about to do,” Tony said firmly.

“I’m glad you know me,” Clint smiled. He then turned back.

“I hope all of you have picked out your best clothes for tonight,” Tony announced.

“If you want the clothes pressed neatly, give them to me. Ana and I will do it,” Jarvis told them.

The rest of them nodded their heads.

“Clean up and come down in a while,” Ana smiled. “Lunch is ready!”

Tony and his friends left the kitchen and took the stairs up. They each ran to their rooms to have a quick shower, and then lunch.

Tony went into the walk-in closet to take out his presentation clothes. Steve too, did the same thing. Before Tony could walk out, Steve grabbed Tony’s arm and stopped him.

“Don’t even think of blaming yourself for whatever that happened,” Steve said, the sincerity glowing in his eyes.

Tony nodded his head, not trusting his voice. After a brief kiss, they both headed down to the kitchen.

 

…

 

In the evening, the six of them were getting ready to go to the restaurant in Sunset Boulevard. It was a Steakhouse, with a formal setting. Tony had taken the extra mile to book a Limousine for the six of them.

Steve was adjusting his tie in his room while looking at the orange tinted sky, with streaks of pink extending to the horizon. He had opened the window and a cool breeze was brushing past his face.

“Hey Steve,” Tony called out. “How do I look?”

Steve finally adjusted the knot on his tie, and turned to look at his boyfriend. And Steve nearly convulsed.

“The pants is fitting, other than that it’s all fine. But really, how do I look?” Tony asked, looking at Steve innocently.

Tony was wearing a shiny grey three-piece suit. His tie was light brown, and pants was just perfect for him. His face had a good amount of foundation, and his hair was all gelled perfectly into place. He simply looked like a celebrity.

“Um,” Steve’s mouth went dry. And he felt his blood rush to the south region of his body. “You look perfect.”

Tony smiled. “Thanks Steve. It was really constructive.”

Steve let out a chuckle, hoping he wouldn’t have an obvious boner.

“Oh crap, the Limo guy is here,” Tony said while looking at his phone. “I’ll go alert the others!”

Tony ran out of the room, leaving Steve to stand there, dazed. Steve realized he was going to have a boner no matter what. He walked quickly to the little dressing table they had, and adjusted himself.

“Guys!” Tony called out while entering Thor’s and Bruce’s room. “It’s time, the driver is here!”

“Well,” Thor grinned. He was sitting on the bed, waiting for Bruce to finish up. He was wearing a suit with a grey shirt, and black tie. His shoes looked really polished and Thor was simply looking stunning. His golden locks were tied into a neat ponytail. “Waiting for friend Bruce.” Thor said.

“I’m done,” Bruce called out from the walk-in closet. He emerged from it, wearing a black tuxedo with a bowtie.

Tony whistled to himself and jogged over to Clint’s and Natasha’s room, which was in a total mess.

“Clint, it’s just some stupid socks!” Natasha sighed and sat down on their shared bed. 

“Guys, driver’s here, let’s get going,” Tony calmly said.

“Well fuckity fuck!” Clint exclaimed in a high-pitched voice. He was throwing his clothes around in the walk-in closet. “My brown socks are missing, Tony.”

“Oh my God, Clint, just ask,” Tony said. He then went back to his room, to take a pair of brown socks for Clint.

He saw Steve adjusting his hair in front of the mirror. And he felt butterflies in his stomach. Steve looked so good in professional clothes. And Tony couldn’t help but feel himself getting hard the more he looked at Steve. He brushed that thought off, because his pants was just right, and a hard-on now will make everything tighter.

Thing was, Steve had seen Tony looking at him from the mirror. He smirked to himself, already knowing what they’re going to be up to tonight.

Tony quickly passed the pair of socks to Clint, and rallied around the rest of his friends.

“You look good, Natasha,” Thor smiled.

She was wearing a scarlet red short dress, with red heels. Her lipstick was bright red, and she looked really stunning. Her hair was let down, and she had them neatly curled to look really wavy.

“Thanks Thor,” Natasha smiled. “I can say the same for you too.”

After Clint was done, they all shut their room doors, locked them, and walked down the stairs.

“My oh my,” Jarvis grinned. “You guys look like you’re all going for a wedding.”

“They all look so good,” Ana squealed. She walked them to where the Limousine driver was waiting for them.

“Enjoy dinner kids!” she waved at them.

Clint opened the door for Natasha, and helped her up. After her, the rest of the guys entered it.

“Oh my God…” Bruce whispered to himself.

The interior of the Limo was beautiful. Once Tony shut the door, the lights inside turned to a cooler shade of purple. The seats were made of leather, and they all could smell luxury in the air. The air conditioning was like heaven, compared to the warm weather outside. There was a champagne corner in the car, and the six of them helped themselves.  

“This is my first time in a freaking Limousine!” Clint nearly screamed out in excitement.

“Calm down Clint,” Natasha smiled. “We’re still not done with the night yet!”

Clint visibly shuddered. Bruce and Thor were enjoying the view, and took small sips from their champagne glasses.

“Can’t wait to eat,” Steve stretched.

“Eat what, Steve?” Clint smirked at him.

“The food, you bozo,” Steve said, unusually calm. But his cheeks felt hot and he adjusted himself on the seat.

“Look at you, all blushing,” Natasha laughed. And that got Tony’s attention. He saw Steve outright blushing and chuckled to himself.

They continued to cruise down the road, enjoying the view and each other’s company. Thor then spoke about how he was beginning to love the West Coast more. He loved the seaside and simply wished to live in a beach house.

“We have glorious views from where I come from,” Thor grinned. He sat back and described his house to his friends. “I live in a townhouse in the capital city, and at times, I go to the port with my younger brother Loki.”

“Iceland sounds like a beautiful place,” Clint smiled.

“It is,” Thor said, as if in a daze. “I really do miss home.”

“Don’t worry Thor,” Natasha said. “Once you’re absolutely free, you can go back to Iceland and come back to school.”

“I’m afraid that’s after four years,” Thor sighed. “Brother Loki and I had a fight on the day I was leaving for Boston. I don’t think I want to go back yet, to face them.”

“Is there a chance your brother Loki is joining Grand U?” Tony asked.

“I do not think Loki is that smart and fit for one of the best universities in the world,” Thor said softly.

The rest of them looked at each other, noting that Loki was not a topic to be raised in front of Thor, considering how sour their relationship sounds just from Thor talking about it.

Within the next five minutes, the Limo pulled up outside the steakhouse. There were couples walking in, looking as good as the six of them did. Thor was the first one to open the door. He held it for the others to get out. What they didn’t expect was paparazzi to gather around them immediately. Natasha got out next, with Thor helping her out, and she didn’t appreciate the flashes being pushed right into her face. The guys slowly poured out next, and didn’t know whether to smile for the cameras or walk away. The last one was Tony, who had an experience with the paparazzi.

He came out, and shut the door. He pushed his friends down the steakhouse’s red carpet, as they were standing there not knowing what to do. He gave his best fake smile to the cameras and walked in. There were many of them shouting Tony’s name, asking him if he was in a relationship, about his dad’s company about him nearly crashing his car at a convenience store a while back. Tony sighed internally and walked down the red carpet with his friends.

“The table for 6?” he smiled at the maître d.

“Surely Mr. Stark,” the maître d smiled back. “Just follow me.”

Once the steakhouse’s door shut, the buzz died down. The silence was bliss inside, compared the flashes and the paparazzi shouting Tony’s name and questions. The six of them settled down in their seats, and sighed.

“I didn’t expect that,” Clint said. “Great, now I’m gonna be in the news.”

“You know, I heard a guy ask Tony if I was his next date,” Natasha let out a laugh.

“Yeah!” Clint said. “Despite me holding her hand. Jesus, it’s like, you were a super star out there and we were simply invisible.”

“Screw them,” Tony muttered to himself. “Anyway, let’s just order our stuff.”

So the six of them spent the next five minutes deciding what they wanted to eat. After telling the waiter their orders, they waited for their food to arrive. Two waiters came and poured red wine into all their glasses. Each of them took small sips.

“Gosh, Jan would have loved this,” Tony smiled. “She was always into fine dining.”

“This would have been new for Bucky,” Steve laughed. “But honestly, thank you Tony. I don’t know why you’re doing this for me, for us. A few years ago, I wouldn’t have thought I would meet you and have a chance to dine with the person I love a lot. I gotta thank you for that.”

The table went silent. Tony even contemplated on swallowing his saliva, because that was how quiet it went.

“Maybe uh…” Clint started. “Maybe the rest of us could go to another table and leave these two here…?”

“I only booked one table,” Tony blurted out, still staring into Steve’s blue eyes. “And… it’s okay Steve. It’s my pleasure.” Tony surely felt his cheeks going warm.

Their appetizers arrived first, and it excited Clint and Thor the most. Once they thanked the waiters, they began digging into their meals. Clint was happily eating his crab cakes when he accidentally flicked some sauce onto his shirt. A waiter who was walking pass him gave him a side-eye glance.

“I think that guy just judged you,” Bruce said.

“Well, that guy neither booked my table nor is paying for my food. So, he can go fuck himself,” Clint rolled his eyes and said it a bit loudly. The others at the table laughed at that.

“Please tell me we will be visiting the theme park soon,” Thor said, while taking a bite from his lobster bisque.

“Yes,” Tony nodded his head. “We will. Tomorrow.”

“Just don’t throw up today’s food during tomorrow’s roller coaster ride,” Natasha raised an eyebrow.

“We haven’t even started, Natasha,” Steve sighed. Natasha let out a chuckle and nudged at Steve's side.

The rest of them continued to eat. But it was getting difficult for Steve to eat. He couldn’t resist looking at Tony. He simply wanted to devour him and that thought itself was making his cock stir in his pants. Steve cleared his throat, and hoped no one had seen him squirm.

“Is everything okay, sir?” the maître d came over and asked Steve, making Steve nearly jump up from his chair.

“Yeah… yeah sir everything is fine,” Steve managed, and proceeded to take a sip of red wine. The maître d nodded his head while smiling, and walked away.

“Everything is but fine,” Thor suddenly said, staring into his bisque. “Friend Steve needs some action tonight with friend Tony.”

And this moment will be remembered by the six of them, as the time when Steve spat his red wine out, across the table, and Tony nearly choking on his Caesar salad.

 

…

 

After desert was done, the six of them sat back and hoped they wouldn’t be consumed by food coma. They had no heart to stand up, but they all did, not wanting to be chased out by the maître d.

Tony walked over and paid first, using his credit card. Steve was walking behind the others, admiring Tony’s shape. He also saw the little bulge Tony had, his tight pants exaggerating it even more.

“I don’t think I need breakfast for tomorrow,” Bruce laughed once they exited the restaurant. “This restaurant had the best steak ever!”

“I agree!” Clint grinned. “And their crème brûlée was just… on top of this world!”

It was 10pm and the wave of paparazzi had died down. The six of them were walking down the street, to where their limousine was parked. Tony and Steve were walking in silence, already knowing what was going to happen once they got home. Steve didn’t know how he was going to take the 50-minute ride back home. Tony wished he wore pants that weren’t that fitting.

Once inside the limousine, Natasha kicked out her heels. There were blisters formed on the back of her feet. Clint offered to massage her legs, and forcefully pulled them to him when she politely refused. Bruce was feeling a little tipsy; he had a tad too much of wine. He placed his head on Thor’s shoulder and rested, hiccuping at random times. Thor simply sat back, and made sure Bruce was feeling fine. He was also watching what Steve and Tony were up to. Which was nothing much. The two of them were looking out of the window, and Tony was snuggled cozily onto Steve.

Nearly everyone was asleep in the limo. Cruising down the highway with the air conditioning at full blast was heaven. When the limo turned into the Stark Mansion, they woke up, feeling disheveled. All except Steve.

“I’m gonna watch some stuff on the TV,” Clint was telling Natasha while entering the mansion. After Tony was done paying the driver, all of them jogged up the stairs. They entered their rooms, ready to get out of their professional clothes.

“No don’t take out,” Steve stopped Tony in their room. He shut the room door and locked it.

Tony stopped the attempt at removing his tie. His eyes locked onto Steve’s. And when he realized what was up, he smirked. “Getting hungry again, are we?”

“Yeah,” Steve said softly, walking slowly towards Tony. Both of their cocks were getting harder.

“Damn,” Tony said. “You can get really horny. You’re possessive too, right? I should have slept with that girl; would have ticked you off.”

Steve felt that that was enough. He let out a growl before lunging onto Tony. He slammed him against the wall, and crashed his lips onto Tony’s. He rubbed his hard cock against Tony, and that earned a moan from him. Tony felt his eyes rolling, and his hips jerked up. Steve’s hands were all over him. Tony was trying to register all the sudden movements, but Steve’s hard kiss made it impossible to.

“I’m gonna fuck you so hard tonight,” Steve whispered hotly into Tony’s ear after breaking the kiss. “Do you have any idea… how hot you looked and what you were doing to me the whole night?” Steve was panting.

Of course, Tony knew. He didn’t really give Steve the attention, because he wanted to tease him. But he didn’t know teasing Steve would ultimately bring out the beast in him.

Both of them took out their pants to free their manhood. Tony sighed once he took off his pants. His eyes widened when he saw Steve’s. “Damn, you’re big.”

“I have a lot of surprises,” Steve said, while stroking himself.

“Lube’s in the drawer,” Tony said.

Steve immediately took it. He poured some onto his cock and stroked himself in front of Tony.

“Selfish much?” Tony raised an eyebrow while touching himself.

Steve lubed his fingers up and turned his full attention to Tony. He widened Tony’s thighs and began to open him up slowly, while using his free hand to support Tony’s back.

“You have done this before, haven’t you?” Tony asked while Steve was opening him up.

“With myself yes,” Steve replied. “With anyone else? No.”

Tony smiled at that. He hissed when he felt himself opening up. He placed his forehead on Steve’s shoulder, inhaling his cologne. And that itself was intoxicating. Steve was intoxicating.

“Such a cooperative boy,” Steve said softly.

“I can be a bad boy too, you know,” Tony smirked.

“Not tonight,” Steve whispered into Tony’s ear, getting a full body shudder from him.

Tony’s eyes widened when he suddenly felt Steve stroke his manhood. He let out a moan when Steve did it harder. Both his hands flew to Steve’s shoulders, and he squeezed them. Tony’s thighs were quivering, and he felt like screaming, losing patience at Steve’s speed. He bucked his hips, wanting more. Steve had noticed this.

“Want more?” he asked Tony, giving him a smirk.

Before Tony could answer, Steve pulled him to their bed and tossed him onto it. Tony couldn’t even register the impact because of how aroused he was. Steve was on top, still stroking his boyfriend’s hard cock, wanting to see him come.

“Oh, come on Steve,” Tony said, gritting his teeth.

“Patience, Tony,” Steve smirked, while increasing the speed of his strokes.

Tony began to moan uncontrollably, and he was writhing already. Steve chose this moment to place a finger into Tony, and straight away hit his sweet spot. Tony let out a little scream when he felt Steve’s finger hit right at home. Steve curled his finger in his boyfriend, and kept hitting his sweet spot.

Tony’s face was all scrunched up in pleasure, and he looked like he was about to explode.

“Oh my God Steve,” Tony panted. “I’m about to come…”

Steve increased his speed, on both stroking and hitting his sweet spot with precision. Under his administrations, Tony lost it. He came real hard, hips bucking up and eyes rolling. Come sprayed out of his cock onto Steve’s arm. He moaned out Steve’s name and let his orgasm wash over him.  

Steve watched his boyfriend having an orgasm, and felt his own manhood twitch. He loved Tony’s orgasm face and wanted to see that one more time.

He allowed Tony to catch his breath and get his bearings together. Once done, Steve pinned Tony’s arms to the bed.

“If you wanted me, this is it,” Steve panted out. He slowly slid himself into Tony.

Tony was simply looking at his boyfriend while feeling himself getting filled up. He let out a few soft moans. When the tip of Steve’s cock hit his sweet spot, Tony let out another scream. Steve began to rock back and forth, making sure Tony was settled in first.

“I’m so ready,” Tony smiled at Steve.

Steve’s grip on Tony’s hands tightened. He pulled out his manhood and slammed back in again. Tony let out a gasp at that sensation. He has opened himself before and had fun. But he never had an actual person ramming into him. There was only so much toys could do.

Steve’s slams were getting harder, and each time Tony felt his sweet spot being activated, he let out loud moans. Their bedframe began hitting the wall, hard.

On the other side, Clint was watching Tom and Jerry on the television when he began hearing the thuds from the room beside his, getting louder. Natasha was in the walk-in closet. Clint got up from the bed, feeling frustrated as he really wanted to watch his cartoon in peace. He wanted to go over to their room. When he heard Tony’s loud scream and Steve’s loud moan.

Clint froze. He then turned away and walked to where Natasha was.

“Oh my God Nat,” Clint said, eyes wide. “I thought Thor was joking.”

Natasha didn’t need further details. “Clint, when the first thud was heard, why do you think I walked into the closet and stayed here?”

Clint shut the walk-in closet door and sat down. “I think I’m so scarred. I heard them scream and moan…” Clint blushed.

“It’s fine. It’s air conditioned here too and we can sleep here,” Natasha smiled.

Clint let out a cry and buried his face into Natasha’s lap, who then proceeded to laugh and brush back Clint’s hair.

Back in Tony’s and Steve’s room, the air reeked of sex. Steve was still slamming into his boyfriend. Both of them were moaning loudly, with Steve getting very close to his orgasm. He looked at Tony writhing under him. He leaned down and kissed his boyfriend. Tony kissed him back, letting out gasps when the feeling was too electrifying.

“Steve…” Tony let out a loud moan and bucked his hips up.

“No.. touch…” Steve whispered out.

And he came, picturing Tony begging him for touch. He spilled his seed deep inside Tony and let out a growl as his orgasm crashed onto him. Steve closed his eyes, as it had begun rolling. He kept moaning Tony’s name out, and rocked his hips.

Tony, who was so close, needed the friction for his cock. He wanted to pry away Steve’s hands and get down to business. He attempted, and felt Steve’s hard grip not letting him go. He sighed and watched his boyfriend come down from his high. Steve wasn’t one to neglect Tony. He kept rocking his hips, and made sure Tony’s sweet spot was getting the hits.

“Oh God…” Tony groaned.

“I got you, baby,” Steve said determinedly.

He then brushed away his tiredness, and slammed down into Tony. His hips jerked up in a fast pace, leaving Tony to moan out a garbled mess of words. Steve grit his teeth and continued to stimulate himself. Tony was shaking under Steve. This went on for a couple of minutes, with Steve getting hard again and Tony on the brink of an orgasm.

“So b’tiful,” Steve smirked while fucking the life out of Tony.

“I’m gonna… gonna..,” Tony couldn’t even complete his sentence.

“Come for me Tony,” Steve ordered.

“Ah fuck,” Tony swore, feeling the rise of his orgasm.

Tony came hard, for the second time. His seed spurted out onto Steve’s chest and abdomen area. Steve felt Tony’s ass clench and unclench on his cock. And that intense feeling made him come hard. He released his come into Tony, again, filling him up for good. Both of them shouted out their names. They were a panting and sweaty mess by the end of the session.

Tony opened his eyes, and looked into Steve’s blue ones. He smiled at him sleepily.

“You know,” Tony started, his voice coarse because of all the shouts and screams. “This is the best sex I ever had.”

“I’m glad it was,” Steve said. He leaned down and gave his boyfriend’s forehead a kiss.

They decided to lie down for a while, taking in the feeling and the bliss. After a few minutes, they both stripped completely and cuddled with each other and knocked out.

Beside them, Thor and Bruce were fast asleep on their bed. While Clint and Natasha were snuggled together in the walk-in closet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think will happen in day 4? Let me know your thoughts in the comments! :)


	4. Day 4: What A Fun Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and his friends visit the amusement park and Howard has some harsh words to share with Tony.  
> Later, Tony goes away somewhere, goes missing, and his friends plus Steve try to get him back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thank you so much for your support for this story! Sorry it took me this long to post this. I hope you enjoy this next chapter!!  
> Happy reading! :)

Tony slowly woke up from his bed. He looked around his room, and registered the sunlight hitting his face. He also realized he was naked on the bed, and alone. He had dried come all over his stomach and he grimaced at that. He sat down at the edge of the bed, and his ass immediately started to hurt. He lied back down, wondering why his ass was hurting; and it also felt sore.

And then the memory of last night hit him like a runaway train.

He got out of bed and immediately threw some clothes on himself. The fast movements made him groan, because of what he went through last night. And he could barely walk to the walk-in closet. He had to waddle his way there.

He also saw how neat the room looked, compared to how it looked last night, with Steve’s and his professional clothes strewn all over the place.

Once he took his towel, he went to the washroom, silently, thinking about how possessive Steve could get. And how much he had loved it.

 

The rest of them were gathered at the swimming pool, which was located at the roof top. Steve was sitting at the edge, and was shaking his legs in the water. Natasha, Thor and Clint were swimming in the pool, splashing water on to one another. Bruce was sitting on a lounge chair right beside the pool, and was sipping on lemonade while watching his friends play.

“Oh Steve,” Clint turned to Steve. “Did you know how loud you and your bae were last night?”

Steve snorted. “I have a clue. You two couldn’t sleep, right?”

“You asshole!” Clint shouted and splashed some water at Steve.

Steve froze on the spot. And Natasha had warning bells ringing in her head.

“Steve?” she called out. “Hey, break out of it!”

Steve shook his head and wiped some water out of his face. “I’m fine.” He said. When the others refused to believe him, he gave them a reassuring nod.

“Sorry Steve…” Clint sighed. “I always forget the most important details.” He chided himself.

“Don’t do that to yourself,” Steve said, voice slightly quiet.

An awkward silence filled the area, with the only sound heard being the splashes Clint and Natasha were creating.

Thor then decided to break the awkward silence by climbing out of the pool and jumping back in. He stretched himself, muscles revealing, and took in a breath. “Watch me friends!” he shouted before jumping back into the water.

Clint swam away to where Steve was while Natasha moved to the side. Thor landed in, hard. A big chunk of water splashed onto Bruce, and some of them went into his glass of lemonade. Bruce stood up and glared at Thor.

“Apologies, friend Bruce,” Thor grinned, while doing a backward stroke.

“My lemonade has chlorine now, Thor,” Bruce sighed. He was really soaked and shook his head. “Gotta get a new one.”

“He is still hanging over,” Thor frowned.

“It’s hangover, Thor. Not hanging over,” Clint corrected him.

“I always thought it was hanging over!” Thor looked surprised. “Back at home, I have been telling my brother Loki just that… No wonder he laughs…”

“No I’m not,” Bruce grumbled while getting a towel from the rack. He strolled back to the edge of the pool and sat beside Steve.

“Look at you!” Clint grinned. Everyone turned behind to look at Tony entering the pool area. He was wearing an over-sized t-shirt with shorts.

Importantly, he could barely walk.

“He can’t even walk!” Clint was laughing. Steve let out a snort and got up.

“Morning sleepyhead,” he gave his boyfriend’s forehead a kiss. “Didn’t want to wake you up. You were really tired, plus, you were snoring.”

Tony’s brain was still trying to register Steve smiling at him, and the sunlight shining behind Steve’s head, making him look like some sort of a God.

“I snored?” he asked after some time.

“Yes Tony honey boo!” Clint made fun of him from the pool.

“It looks like Steve had fucked the brains out of Tony,” Bruce said.

Everyone turned to look at him, not expecting Bruce to speak with a strong language. Bruce gave them all a light smile and shrugged.

“Ah, there they all are,” Jarvis smiled while walking to the pool area. “Master Stark, you missed breakfast. And here’s some orange juice to wake you up.”

Tony took it, and took a sip. The citrus flavor woke him up immediately.

“Ah, kids, I also have your _unlimited rides wristband_ for the amusement park,” Jarvis looked at them coolly. He started to laugh when he saw all of them run towards him; especially Clint waddling right after jumping up from the pool.

 The six of them took the wristbands and examined it. They knew they were going to have a very enjoyable time together at the theme park. Tony thanked Jarvis and told his friends to change up quickly. They were all sharing one car today, and were headed for the Santa Monica Pier.

Excitement was like a bright light that was lit on all of their faces. Some ran into the house to get their clothes, while Natasha and Clint stayed behind to wipe themselves first.

 

…

 

Tony was throwing the car keys up and down, waiting for Thor to be done. Natasha and Bruce were already walking down the stairs, while Clint and Steve were with Tony. All of them were checking for their valuables; Clint came up with an idea to store all their hand phones and wallets inside one bag so that they could use one locker. So everything was in one bag, including two water bottles, a sunscreen, a few packets of snacks and their wristbands, compliments of Tony who had bought that for his friends and himself online; just two days prior to their trip to Malibu.

“Okay friends, I am done!” Thor grinned while literally bouncing down the stairs.

He was wearing Bermuda shorts and a soft cotton t-shirt, just like the guys. Natasha was wearing a three-quarter track pants and a tank top. Her hair was brushed back neatly, secured into a fine ponytail.

“You didn’t tie up your gold locks today?” Steve asked while walking out of the house.

“I wanted to let them down, friend Steve,” Thor said. “It’ll be nice to let my hair fly while being on the roller coaster!”

“Point taken,” Steve smiled.

Today, Tony was driving all of them to the theme park. They simply had to squeeze at the back, which they were all fine with.

“Please be safe,” Jarvis warned them. “Take care of your valuables, have lunch at appropriate times and drink lots of water.”

The six of them nodded their heads. Tony sat at the driver’s seat of the Audi convertible. He started the engine, and waited for the rest of them to get in. Steve was riding shotgun. Bruce sat at the back first, followed by Natasha and Thor.

“Aw come on…” Clint rolled his eyes. He slowly climbed in, having to squeeze inside. Thor immediately grabbed Clint, and pulled him towards him, as if he were hugging him. “Such affection.” Clint smiled. After the doors were shut and locked, Tony sped along the bends, easily. He then exited the gate, waving at the security guards, who waved back at him.

“No race speed,” Steve shouted, as the wind beating past him drowned out his voice.

“Got it Mr. Safety First!” Tony grinned.

“Just get us there faster,” Clint cried out. “Thor’s bear hugs are getting unbearable!”

“As sad as that pun would be,” Natasha rolled her eyes.

Tony continued to cruise down the highway, and Clint was looking at the seaside they were speeding by. He didn’t really want this little vacation to end. This has been one of the best trips he’s ever had in his life. He sat back and closed his eyes, enjoying the Malibu winds.

They were all driving in silence, just enjoying the wind and their company.

“Does it still hurt?” Steve turned to ask Tony.

“My ass?” Tony replied. “Yeah… still sore, Steve. I still feel you ramming into me.”

“Guys… guys!!” Bruce raised his voice from the back. “The four of us are still here!!”

Steve and Tony turned to one another. They smirked at each other and turned back.

 

After about half-an-hour, they reached Santa Monica Pier. Tony parked the car and all of them poured out of it. He activated the retractable hard top, and it covered the car within seconds.

Clint and Thor were already grinning while looking at the rides from the outside. They all walked in, looking in awe at the various stalls lined up. Natasha had never really gone to the theme park before. She had only attended one carnival, and that was a bad experience because of the bullies she had faced. She then felt someone’s arm going around her shoulder. She turned to look at Clint, who gave her a sweet smile and pulled her closer to him. She rested her head on his shoulder for one second, before looking away, at a little girl getting a teddy bear from one of the stalls.

“Okay guys,” Tony said. “Rides first or stalls first?”

 “Rides!” Thor and Bruce grinned.

“We’re fine with anything,” Natasha smiled.

“Then rides it shall be,” Tony smiled. He made sure everyone was wearing their wristbands.

After finding a locker for their bag, the six of them walked briskly to the roller coaster ride. Soon, they were seated, secured and ready to ride. Once the green light was given, everyone sat back, feeling the adrenaline starting to pump. When the roller coaster picked up speed, Thor started to scream a manly scream, and made Bruce crack up. When the roller coaster speedily descended, Thor’s high-pitched screaming reached an even more impossible higher pitch.

Tony and Steve were seated right at the front. They raised their arms and screamed when the roller coaster descended. Both of them let out a laugh when they somehow heard Thor’s screams.

“Fuck!” Tony screamed when the roller coaster turned.

Steve was grinning, looking down at the attractions while speeding by. And he was able to catch sight of a few men wearing suits standing near a balloon shooting stall. He swore he saw a man looking exactly like Howard Stark. But he thought he was hallucinating, because why would Howard go to a theme park in the first place? Steve turned back, and decided to focus on the fun he was having with Tony.

The ride came to an end soon. The six of them got down and walked to get their shoes. Thor’s legs were shaking, and he held onto Bruce for support.

“He was screaming like a little girl,” Bruce was laughing.

“So that was you!” Clint grinned. Natasha was walking beside him, chuckling at them. She felt her adrenaline still pumping.

They went for a few other rides, laughing and giggling together. They got themselves corn dogs from a stand, and sat at an empty bench (miraculously they found one) at the boardwalk and ate together. Clint got himself cotton candy and devoured it fully. Bruce had gotten some large cheese fries, and shared it with the others.

“You know Steve,” Tony said while chewing a fry. “Despite me having a thing for water, I do like the ocean. There’s something calming about it. The seaside, sitting at the shore and listening to the rhythm of the waves, I love it.”

Steve turned to look at his boyfriend with a soft smile. He was eating a corndog. And he didn’t know what to tell Tony, who was looking at the open ocean with a peaceful look on his face. Steve didn’t want to disturb Tony’s moment of peace with himself, which was a rare occurrence. So he decided not to say anything.

“I really loved the roller coaster,” Natasha smiled, and Steve overheard that.

“I loved it too,” Steve agreed. “It was something different to hear Thor scream like a girl. It was a change.”

“You guys are so mean,” Bruce laughed while taking a sip of soda.

“Dude,” Clint swung an arm around Bruce. “Thor looks quite muscular and he looks like a dude. A dude many girls would crush on. So obviously manly screams came as a surprise right!”

"We so have to tell Jane about this!" Bruce suggested.

The others were laughing at that, with Clint hitting Bruce for what he had said. Thor sat down there with a fake pout and a little blush on his cheeks, because of the mention of Jane Foster. He was also eating a sausage bun, and had smeared mustard and chili sauce on his mouth.

“I want an even more thrilling ride after this,” Clint declared.

“I know one,” Tony suddenly said. “But you might throw up.”

“Not a problem. I want the thrill!” Clint bounced up.

Tony turned to look at Clint, with a sinister smirk lighting up his face.

 

…

 

“This was a bad idea, Tony,” Clint said.

The six of them, after a filling lunch together, were standing in front of the _Pacific Plunge,_ watching the five-seater ride slowly rising up. After a few seconds, it dipped down. The people sitting on it screamed.

“You wanted some thrill,” Tony raised an eyebrow. “So… here’s one for you.”

Clint sighed. He then nodded his head.

“It’s five, so you guys go ahead,” Tony said. “I’ve been on one similar, so I know how it feels.”

Before anyone objected, Tony gave them a light-hearted glare and motioned for them to go. The five of them walked to the counter. After a few minutes of waiting, they were getting ready for the ride. Tony was just standing, and was watching them sitting down nervously.

And then, the ride began. Tony could hear Clint’s scream already slowly starting. He chuckled to himself.

“I think I need the toilet!!” Thor screamed, looking around him.

Steve let out a laugh. He then looked down, trying to locate Tony. But the crowd was too much, and he couldn’t find him.

Below, Tony was grinning at them. Suddenly, he felt someone tap his shoulder, and he turned behind.

“Meet me at the boardwalk, we need to talk,” Howard quickly said.

Tony’s grin melted out of his face. He turned to look at his friends one last time before following Howard’s figure to the boardwalk.

Within minutes, both of them were standing side by side, looking at the water. Tony quickly texted Steve saying he went to the washroom, knowing full well if he mentioned about Howard’s presence, Steve will get real mad.

He saw a few seagulls flying past him, and a little boy dropping his cotton candy on the boardwalk floor. The boy started to cry while his dad picked him up, saying it was alright and that they’ll get him a new cotton candy.

“What do you want?” Tony asked.

“I need to talk to you about Stark Industries,” Howard sighed. He leaned against the railing. Tony raised an eyebrow and turned to look at his dad. “It’s something I thought. I also wanted you to know, so I came here. Look son, in case something happens to me, you will be the one running the company in the future. I know you, son. I know you trust people too easily and that’s not good. I-”

“Let me just stop you here,” Tony said, interrupting his dad. “You came all the way here to ruin my fun and talk to me about _your_ company?”

“Is that a problem?” Howard frowned. “It’s something important and it’s not like you’re going to pick up your damn phone. So I figured direct contact would be good. Anyway, I wanted to tell you that you will be working closely with Obi. He’s a nice guy but… it’s not wise to trust him too much.”

Tony let out a laugh that sounded bitter. “Of course, you don’t really trust anyone. Not even mum!”

“Tony,” Howard gritted his teeth. “If I were you, I’d watch your words. Listen to me. I don’t have a good feeling about Stark Industries’ future. You’re the only that can turn this around. You should understand why I’m telling you not to fully trust Obi. He has connections everywhere, son. He even has connections with Roxxon Corporation, our rival company!”

“Dad,” Tony said, sounding irritated. “Is everything always about rivalry and competition for you? Anyway, I know Obi. He’s a good guy and he won’t betray Stark Industries. I mean, this is the job that pulled him out of the mud!”

“You know what son,” Howard shook his head. He looked really disappointed. He started to walk away from Tony. “This was a mistake.”

“If it was a mistake, don’t bother making it again!” Tony raised his voice, making a few of the people walking turn to look at him.

Howard stopped dead on his tracks. He immediately turned back and walked towards Tony, making him regret his words.

“You know Tony,” Howard hissed, stepping into Tony’s personal space. “You are one of my biggest mistakes. I would bother to erase you if I only I had a fucking eraser. But life doesn’t work that way. I wish you would get my message across your thick skull because right now, you’re just being a prick. Tony, I am warning you about your future. And this is how lightly you’re taking it? All the best. You’re gonna be the biggest failure there is in this world.”

Howard didn’t bother to tone down his insults despite seeing the tears in Tony’s eyes. He gave his son one last glare before walking away.

Tony turned to look at the bobbing water and finally let his tears fall. It was true. He was going to be a big failure.

Tony wiped his tears and walked back to the amusement park. But he wasn’t headed back for his friends. He was headed somewhere else.

 

…

 

By 4pm, Steve and the others had already started to panic. They tried calling Tony’s phone many times, but he didn’t pick it up. They left him a spam of messages, which was left unread.

“What the heck happened?” Clint asked. “Did he like… have a bad stomach and stay in the toilet or something?”

“I don’t think so…” Steve sighed. “Anyway, I just got a text from Thor saying he’s not in any of the toilets. I wonder if he left…”

“Leave?!” Clint’s eyebrows shot up. “Leave us alone in this place which we’re so unfamiliar with?”

“I don’t know what else can explain his sudden disappearance,” Bruce added. He and Thor were walking back after going around the entire amusement park searching for Tony.

“You think he got kidnapped?” Natasha asked. “I mean, he’s a pretty public figure by now. That’s one possible explanation.”

Steve felt his knees go weak. Thor held him, stopping him from crashing onto the ground. Natasha tried to locate Tony’s GPS. She let out a sigh and waited. Bruce and Clint were just standing there. They already knew the fun was over even though it was just 4pm. Bruce looked at the polaroid photo he was holding. The six of them had taken it just now, right after lunch. They all were making crazy faces in it. It was taken in a booth, one of the stalls, and all of them have one copy to keep as a memory.

“Guys,” Natasha frowned. “It’s weird. But Tony’s GPS says he’s actually here. But… it doesn’t specifically pinpoint where.”

“So obviously friend Tony wasn’t kidnapped,” Thor pointed out. “Either he had a really bad stomach or something has happened to him.

Steve, who was leaning against Thor, had a sudden realization. “Guys, while going on the roller coaster just now I think I saw a few men dressed up in suits. I even think I saw Tony’s dad among them. Do you think…?”

Clint raised an eyebrow. “Then there’s only one way to find out. Get our bag guys. The car key is there. We’ll try finding for Howard. We will go to Stark Industries if we have to.”

The rest of them agreed. They all were determined to find their friend, whatever it was going to take. They got their bag and quickly went to their car.

What they didn’t know was that Tony was actually still in the amusement park. It’s just that he wasn’t up with the public. He was down, under the boardwalk, sitting on the moist sand and was letting the sea water wash his legs. He had been crying for a long time and simply wanted to be alone.

 

…

 

When Steve and company reached home, they immediately ran into the mansion. Jarvis smiled at them, but he realized Tony wasn’t there with them.

“Where is Master Stark?” Jarvis asked. He was arranging the magazines that were on the coffee table.

“Jarvis, is Howard here?” Steve asked.

Jarvis was surprised at how Steve had called Tony’s dad by his name. “Uh, yes Master Rogers. He is at his office.”

Steve and the others started to walk up the stairs.

“I demand an explanation!” Jarvis raised his voice.

“Tony is missing. And we have a feeling Howard has something to do with that,” Clint bitterly said before continuing his way up the stairs.

Steve slammed open the office door, startling Howard.

“What did you do to Tony?” Steve went straight to the point.

Howard smiled. “You kids are really smart. Anyway, I didn’t do a thing to him,” he replied.

Natasha stepped forward with her arms crossed. “If you didn’t do a thing to him, then what were you doing at Santa Monica Pier today?”

“Your answer better be good,” Clint gritted his teeth.

“I was there to talk to Tony,” Howard walked to his cabinet. He took out a bottle of whiskey and opened it. He poured himself some in a glass. “I spoke to him about Stark Industries. And he didn’t like that talk so I left him to it.” He took a drink.

“You must have said something,” Bruce glared at him. “What did you tell him?”

When the silence stretched longer, Thor stepped in. “We demand an answer from you!” he shouted.

“I told him that I wish he wasn’t even born!” Howard shouted. He threw his glass at the kids, almost hitting Clint’s head. The glass shattered upon impact with the wall that was behind them. “I told him if I had an eraser, I would erase him out of my life! I told him the truth, that he was going to remain a failure forever!!!”

Steve lunged forward and grabbed Howard’s suit. He didn’t even care about the alcohol smell reeking from him, he wanted to get his words straight down Howard. “Look here asshole, because of your words my boyfriend is missing. If we don’t find him by tomorrow morning, you’re dead meat!”

“Let go,” Natasha gritted her teeth while trying to pry Steve away from Tony’s dad. “Now we know who is responsible, at least we can try to find him. He’s still at Santa Monica Pier.”

Steve pushed Howard down before storming out of the office. The rest of them followed out, starting to feel the panic rise.

“Steve, you stay here in case Tony comes home,” Natasha ordered. “Clint, take another car and drive around with Bruce. Look for Tony. Thor and I will cover Santa Monica Pier, again.”

Before anyone could open their mouths to argue, their legs started to move.

Steve cupped his face using his hands and decided to sit at his room for a while.

 

…

 

He ended up sleeping instead. When he woke up, the time was well past 8pm. He took his phone to look for messages, or even a call from his friends or Tony. Only messages from his friends were there.

 

 _We can’t find him at the Pier. It’s like he’s there and not there. I think he dropped his phone here and walked away somewhere else._ -Natasha, 6.30pm

 _He’s not at the roads or any other parts of LA. We drove past Sunset Boulevard twice._ -Clint 7pm

 _His GPS moved!! We’re looking for him. He should be at the highway_! -Natasha, 7.30pm

 _We still can’t find him. GPS says he’s near the highway, at the cliffs._ -Thor, 7.45pm

 

Steve sighed. He decided to go up to the rooftop to clear his mind.

When he reached up there, he wasn’t expecting to see Jarvis walking around the gym area.

“Master Rogers,” he greeted. “What brings you to the roof at this stressful point of time?”

“Just… wanted to clear my mind,” Steve replied, feeling tired.

He walked to the edge and stood there, listening to the sound of the waves kissing the shore.

“I am aware of the relationship you share with Master Stark,” Jarvis said. He joined Steve, and stood beside him. “I know how painful this must be for you.”

Steve let out a soft chuckle. “It’s pain. I just… I just want him to be fine.”

Jarvis placed his hand on Steve’s shoulder. Steve wiped his tears and let out a shaky sigh.

“Master Rogers, I need you to promise me one thing,” Jarvis said. He took in a deep breath before continuing. “I need you to promise me that you will never hurt Tony the way Whitney Frost did. That you’ll always be there for him and will never let him go despite how difficult it can get to handle him.”

Steve turned to look at Jarvis, with more tears gathering in his eyes. “Jarvis,” he said softly. “I promise you that I’ll take good care of Tony, that even you’ll get jealous.”

Jarvis smiled at Steve’s words. He gave Steve’s shoulder a firm squeeze, already knowing Tony was in good hands.

“Now, where do you think Master Stark went to?” Jarvis asked.

“His GPS says highway, edge of the cliff,” Steve spoke. He calmed down slightly, after feeling the Malibu winds on his skin. “But the others can’t really find him there.”

“Has he ever told you any place he finds great to calm himself down?” Jarvis asked.

Steve closed his eyes and thought back. He tried remembering Tony’s words, from the beginning of the trip. He got reminded of Tony hugging Jarvis and introducing him to his friends at the airport. He got reminded of Tony calming Steve down after he broke down. He got reminded of Tony grinning while getting ready for the dinner and the sex after. He recalled the trip to the amusement park and recalled Tony’s words during lunch.

 _“There’s something calming about it. The seaside, sitting at the shore and listening to the rhythm of the waves, I love it.”_ Tony had said.

Steve’s eyes snapped open. “Oh my God Jarvis…” he nearly fell onto the floor as realization crashed onto him. “I know where Tony is!!”

He started to run down the stairs, texting Natasha for Tony’s GPS location. He took a car key from Jarvis and sped out of the house, still hoping Tony was there and didn’t do anything stupid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where do you think Tony is? Let me know your feedback in the comments! :)


	5. Day 5: Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony goes home, and hopefully, he's content there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, I was supposed to update this fic a long time ago. Sadly, my laptop crashed and I lost every single fic of mine, including this which I was close to completing. I had to re-write every single work of mine, and many are still WIPs.  
> I am currently working on the final chapter of this story and will upload the next few real soon!  
> For all those who waited for this, I'm so sorry it took me so long! And thank you for reading my work and for supporting me. It means a lot to me :)
> 
> Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoy it! Happy reading!!

It took a long time for Steve to find the right beach, where Tony was. He was driving around, not even caring about the speedometer, or even about getting a speeding ticket. He needed to find Tony, and fast.

So, he kept driving, ignoring any hunger pangs he was getting. He was really worried about Tony. But as he closed in on the right beach, part of him was glad his boyfriend hadn’t done anything stupid, yet.

He realized this beach was not so far away from the mansion, and it was near the cliffs. Steve parked the car and dashed in. 

At 1am, the beach was pretty empty, and only one figure was sitting there, facing the sea.

Steve sighed in relief. Whatever worry he had coiled up inside his chest finally found its way out. He jogged to where his boyfriend was and crashed down beside him, letting his tears rise to the surface.

 

Tony had been sitting here for over an hour. His phone was right beside him, not touched at all. He had cried a lot for the past few hours, which resulted in a headache slowly creeping up in his head.

He managed to catch the sound of footsteps, jogging towards him. He froze, thinking it was the security or cops… Fuck, had someone from home called a search party for him?

The footsteps stopped right beside him. Tony heard a shuffling sound, and a thud as the person sat beside him. He saw Steve in his peripheral vision and sighed a sigh of relief.

“Tony…” Steve said softly. “What… why are you here alone? Come home, Tony.”

“Home,” Tony let out a laugh. He felt how dry his throat was, as if someone had rubbed sandpaper all over it, and how hoarse his voice sounded. “What is home, Steve?”

Steve was surprised by that question. He swallowed, not knowing what was the right thing to say. But he disregarded the confusion and spoke from his heart. 

“Tony, home is where the people you love and the people who love you are. Everyone’s been worried, looking for you…” 

“Not everyone.” Tony said curtly.

“But majority of them are,” Steve said, trying not to sound exasperated. “Thor, Clint, Nat, Bruce and I, Jarvis and Ana and your mom… Tony, we want you home.”

Tony turned to look at Steve, his eyes were brimming with tears. “I don’t think I want to go there with that man there.”

“But the rest of us are there.”

“He’ll… he made me feel worthless, Steve. He just… his words hurt. And I could take it, for twenty years. But now it feels a little too much.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Steve said firmly. He held Tony’s hand. “We’re there to protect you. It’s us against that one man.”

There was a light smile lingering on Tony’s face. He held Steve’s hand too, gripping it tightly.

“I don’t think I’m ready to face anybody,” Tony confessed, letting out a sigh. 

“Then we’ll sit here until you’re ready,” Steve assured him. His phone vibrated; Natasha was calling him. “Hey Nat? Yes… I found him. We’ll come back in a while. He needs time. Sure thing. Okay, bye.”

“Nat,” Tony said.

“We’ve all been looking for you. They nearly launched a search party.”

Both of them sat back, with Steve hugging Tony. Tony rested his head on Steve’s chest, trying to listen to his heartbeat. He closed his eyes and felt safe in Steve’s arms. He smiled to himself as he felt the tears rise again, because with Steve there, he felt like he was home.

 

…

 

Tony and Steve returned home at 8am. They had spent the last 7 hours sitting at the beach and driving around LA. 

When Tony entered the mansion, Jarvis was the first one to run to him. He squeezed him in the name of giving him a hug. “Oh Tony…” Jarvis cried a little.

“Sorry Jarv,” Tony smiled, even though on the inside, he felt crushed seeing Jarvis cry. “I needed time.”

“Thanks for making us drive around LA,” Clint added to lighten the mood. “I mean, GPS and Maps became our best friends overnight, plus we did a little sightseeing on our own.”

Tony and the rest of them gathered laughed at that. Clint, always knew how to humor people, and that was why Tony respected him so much. 

“Sorry guys,” Tony shrugged, smiling sheepishly.

“We’re glad you’re safe,” Natasha gave him a hug. 

“And that is the most important matter, friend Tony,” Thor grinned.

“Welcome back, pal,” Bruce said, adjusting his glasses. He looked really disheveled, like he hadn't gotten enough sleep at all…

“Sit down everyone,” Ana said, while wiping her tears. “I’ll bring coffee and juice.”

Ana and Jarvis went into the kitchen, while Tony and his friends sat down on the couch. Tony couldn’t help but look around him; his friends were sitting beside him, closely and tightly. This was all Tony needed, his friends by his side, and he already felt safe.

“Oh Tony!!” Maria Stark dashed down the stairs while wiping her tears. Tony stood up and felt his mom grab onto him, giving him a tight hug. “I was so worried… Howard was… forget him.” 

She smiled at him through her tears, and brushed back his hair. This was all it took for Tony to let his emotions rise to the surface. He felt a teardrop roll down his eye, landing on his shirt. 

“Don’t care about your father’s words,” Maria said firmly. “He’s an old man, he cares for you, but he doesn’t know how to put it in words or display it.”

Tony scoffed at that. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“Oh Tony,” Maria said sadly and tilted her head to the side. “I hope it will be soon, then.”

Before Tony could say anything, he heard his father’s voice.

“There he is,” Howard said. Everyone stood up now, and the atmosphere in the living room changed within a millisecond. “Knew you would come back home.”

“Howard…” Maria turned to him and shook her head in disapproval.

Tony stared at his father, trying not to let his emotions rise to the surface. His father’s expression remained stoic. 

“We nearly called a search party for you,” Howard explained, walking down further. 

Tony could feel his friends’ protective selves emerging.

“Glad you came back yourself,” Howard said and stopped.

Tony frowned. He would never have thought, in his entire life, he would ever hear his father utter the word ‘glad’ directed at him. This was a new revelation.

“What he means is, less press and less stress,” a familiar male voice said. The figure was standing behind Howard, and he walked in front. 

“Obi,” Tony smiled. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“Good to see you back,” Obadiah Stane smiled. 

Just then, Ana and Jarvis walked back with two trays, one carrying the drinks and the other carrying Ana’s special crepes. They stopped walking when they saw who were all gathered at the living room.

“Tony, come on up, boy,” Obi called him, waving a hand. “Let’s have a little talk.”

Tony smiled to himself, guessing what Obi was going to talk about. Everyone, nearly everyone were trying to make him understand about his father. But Tony felt like he had understood enough.

He followed Obi up to his dad’s office, while the rest of them stood below, watching them go. 

“You kids have guts and are smart,” Tony heard Howard complimenting his friends, again, despite them nearly maiming him on the first day itself. “The one thing Tony did right was finding himself the right friends.”

Tony felt his heart swell with pride; the one thing he did right. Gosh, he loved his close friends.

Wait, why was this day so weird? Why was his dad being nice today?

Obi shut the office door and sat at the edge of the table. Tony sat on the chair in front Obi, stretching his legs out onto the table. Obi was simply watching Tony, assessing him.

“I reckon… we didn’t come here for a staring competition?” Tony asked, crossing his arms across his chest.

“No we didn’t,” Obi’s serious face turned into a happy face in a second. “I wanted to talk about what Howard wanted to discuss with you.”

Tony didn’t want to think back to what his father had told him yesterday afternoon. But he did, and even though it was really painful to rehear his words, Tony managed to remember what Howard had wanted to discuss. How Tony kept his calm demeanor even surprised himself.

“I know, that Howard is really worried about the company,” Obadiah started, in a low voice. “He went to talk to you about it, about the future.”

“You knew?” Tony raised an eyebrow. 

“He told me,” Obadiah shrugged. He licked his lips before continuing. “We are partners, Tony. We share the company’s future and our concerns with each other. That’s why when Howard said he wanted to talk to you about it, I told him not to.”

Obadiah let out a little chuckle, and Tony felt himself getting uncomfortable. Why was Obadiah talking to him about this?

“So your business partner didn’t listen to you…” Tony said, choosing his words carefully. Obadiah broke his eye contact with Tony, and then shook his head. Tony followed Obadiah’s sight, and found himself looking at an old newspaper clipping about Stark Industries; about their success.

“He went to talk to you,” Obadiah turned to look at Tony. “And it all turned sour. I advised him not to talk to you any harsh words for the time-being.”

Tony looked at Obadiah, unsure of what to feel. He wanted to hear what more Obadiah had to say. 

“Look Tony,” Obadiah stood up. He walked forward slightly and stopped, leaving his hands akimbo. “This company… it was built by hard work and hours of work, sweat, tears and even blood. I can’t let it crumble. And I won’t let anyone,  _ anyone  _ ruin this company that your father and I started from scratch.”

Tony also stood up and watched Obadiah’s body language. Tony couldn’t understand why Obadiah was saying what he was saying, and why he looked almost… angry, that even Tony could see Obadiah's tense body language from the back. Strange enough, he also felt the words directed at him... But it can't be. Tony wouldn't want to do anything, especially harm, to Stark Industries.

“I…” Tony searched for the right words. “I… don’t think I understand why dad is worried about the company’s future when you… are here with determination.”

Tony watched Obadiah’s tense body language relax slightly. 

“Anyway, are we done?” Tony asked, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

“Yes,” Obadiah turned and chuckled. “We’re done here. Glad you understood what I was saying.”

He walked forward and hugged Tony, giving his back a pat. Tony hugged back, feeling not only confused but really awkward. 

“I’m glad you’re okay, Tony,” Obi said. Tony could see the sincerity in his eyes.

“You know… sometimes I wish I can hear this from my own dad,” Tony let his emotions rise to the surface again, dismissing the awkward conversation they just had. “But… coming from you, close enough, Obi.”

Obadiah smiled and gave Tony’s shoulder a pat. “We are family. Anyway, you must be tired. Why don’t you rest and enjoy your time with your really protective friends?”

Tony nodded his head. He started to walk to the door.

“And you might consider taking a shower!” Obadiah called after him. 

“You got it Obi!” Tony grinned.

Once Tony shut the office door, he just stood there. He thought about what Obadiah had said, about the company… And why his father was so reluctant to trust Obadiah with the company, who seemed so fired up to get the company going… And Howard spoke almost as if he knew he wouldn’t be here for the next 10 years… 

What was going on?

Tony decided to push all these thoughts to the back of his head, to think about them later. For now, he definitely needed a shower and his good friends’ company, especially Steve’s.

 

…

 

Tony tried to press his head into his pillow, not wanting to hear another word from the debate happening between the 5 of his friends. It was literally Team Clint versus Team Thor.

Basically, Clint wanted to watch an explosive action movie while Thor wanted something animated, like Finding Nemo.

Clint was being backed up by Steve and Natasha. While Thor only had Bruce supporting him. Tony wanted to join neither. 

“Thor, come on, movies like Point Break is something you’ll obviously enjoy!!” Clint pointed out.

“I want to watch Toy Story! Or something animated!” Thor declared. 

“How about Godfather?” Bruce suggested. Thor threw him a look that told Bruce to zip it up. 

“Guys, come on, action afternoon will be fun!” Steve said. He turned to Tony, who looked utterly annoyed. “What do you think, Tony?”

Tony looked at his boyfriend with an eyebrow raised. 

“I think this debate is stupid,” Tony pushed the pillow to the side and sat upright. "And utterly pointless."

Tony and his good friends were all gathered in his room to spend the afternoon watching movies and resting with one another. The initial plan was for all of them to go the TCL Chinese Theatre to catch a movie and walk down the Walk of Fame. But since Tony was too tired to go out, they decided to push the outing to tomorrow.

Nonetheless, since everyone were in a movie-watching mood, they decided to watch something in the comfort of Tony’s room. 

Of course, with that many people with different tastes, movie selections were colliding pretty badly.

“Why would you say that?” Bruce frowned. Perhaps Tony had a point?

“It’s easy,” Tony sighed, massaging his forehead. “Watch an animated movie now and an action movie at night. It’s better because the visual effects would look amazing on this big screen with the lights switched off.”

Both teams took in Tony’s words. They didn’t call him a genius for nothing.

“Alright we give in,” Clint smiled. “What animated movies are there?”

Tony blew a raspberry and slammed his head onto the bed frame. This was not over…

“Easy,” it was Bruce’s turn to smile. “Thor and I decided on The Secret Life of Pets. Is that okay?”

“Perfect,” Tony smiled and hopped out of his bed before anyone else could disagree. He took the remote and tossed it to Thor, after playing the movie. 

Tony joined in with the others, who snuggled closely to him. The movie began, and they passed the bowl of popcorn around to each other. Tony shifted closer to Steve, who wrapped his arm around Tony. 

Tony felt the warmth from his boyfriend and good friends despite the air-conditioning cooling the room; he loved them to bits and would lay his life down for either of them.

 

…

 

When 7pm rolled by, Clint, Natasha, Steve and Bruce scurried up the stairs back to Tony’s room after dinner. They couldn’t wait to watch The Matrix (Clint’s choice). Thor stayed behind to help Tony wash the dishes, while Jarvis and Ana cleaned the table.

“Why don’t you like action movies, Thor?” Tony couldn’t help but ask. “You look like a pretty hardcore action movie fan.”

Thor remained silent for the longest of times, which made Tony feel guilty, almost immediately. He continued wiping the dishes, hoping Thor would say something.

“My brother Loki loves action movies,” Thor started, sounding really somber. “I do too. But one day, my brother and I wanted to watch different action movies, and we fought. We were quite young at that time. Anyway, the fight ended badly, with my mom making us watch what Loki wanted. I didn’t talk to either of them for a week and then… my mother died…”

Tony felt a pang of pain and guilt smash into his heart. He looked at Thor, who had stopped wiping the wet plates dry. His hands were shaking slightly.

“I’m sorry…” Tony said. 

“Why are you apologizing, friend Tony?” Thor turned to him, asking with a very light smile. “You had nothing to do with it.”

“It’s… I feel bad asking,” Tony explained.

“You don’t have to. As my friend, you deserve that knowledge,” Thor said.

“Then… so do the others!”

“Uhh, they didn’t ask!” Thor grinned. 

Ana walked to the counter to take more bowls of popcorn upstairs. “They started the movie without you, boys.”

“Are those for them?” Thor asked, nodding his head at the popcorn. 

Ana nodded her head.

“Tell them Thor and I will take a minute. We’ll join them after a while,” Tony said.

“Sure,” Ana smiled before walking away with the popcorn.

“Thank you, friend Tony,” Thor smiled at him, his genuineness shimmering in his eyes.

Just then, Howard Stark entered. 

“Hello sir,” Thor smiled at him. “Good to see you looking fresh and not reeking with alcohol in that claustrophobic room.”

Thor’s honesty made Tony cringe. He squeezed his eyes shut, wishing the ground could swallow him.

To Tony’s absolute surprise, Howard laughed at that. “Good to be out for fresh air too.”

Thor walked out of the kitchen first with Jarvis complaining about how the glass coffee table always had fingerprints on it.

Tony was wiping the last of the wet dishes, while Howard was filling up his plate with dinner, which was Chinese takeout.

“So, Obi spoke to you?” Howard asked without giving his son any eye contact. 

“Yeah,” Tony said, feeling his throat go dry. “Yeah, he did. Pretty good talk.”

“Yeah, I bet he spoke about the safety of the company and legacy related shit,” Howard said. 

And this was the first time Tony heard his father sounding real tired. Even when he was a kid, when SI was at its peak, and when SI had to manage PR and press problems, Howard hadn’t sounded this tired…

“Dad,” Tony couldn’t help it. “Why are you not trusting Obadiah? He seems to want to take this company to great heights.”

“What happens when you fall from a great height, Tony?” Howard turned to him. 

Tony looked at his father, at how fatigued his facial features looked and how sunken his eyes were. “You die?” he said.

“Imagine that happening to SI.”

Tony frowned. What did his father mean?

“But… okay, so you don’t fully trust your  _own_ business partner?”

After a few seconds of silence, Howard admitted by nodding his head.

“Why?” Tony asked.

“Tony,” Howard sighed. “I told you yesterday that Obi and Roxxon has connections. Roxxon has been competing with us in terms of clean energy and fuels. They see us as a very great rival.”

“There is a saying that says keep your friends close but enemies closer. Maybe that’s what Obi’s doing, dad,” Tony tried to justify.

“Really?” Howard asked quietly. He looked around to see if anyone else was in the kitchen. Once he realized there was no one, he took a step closer to Tony, who almost, by reflex, took a step back. Howard saw his son's body language, and chose to ignore it despite looking a little guilty. “You tell me, son. Why would Obadiah supply some of our stock to Roxxon under the table, if he only wanted to keep our enemies closer?”

Tony's eyes widened. Under the table dealings were serious. 

“Have you reported to the board?” Tony asked.

“I don’t have concrete evidence yet,” Howard sighed. “But once I do, I’ll do everything in my power to remove Obi. I can’t believe I trusted him.”

“Then you’ll be CEO?” Tony asked.

Howard gave Tony a long look, which made Tony feel all self-conscious. 

“There’s still time for that.” Howard looked away.

“Right,” Tony said.

“Look son,” Howard said. “This dealing… it seemed like a payment, but I don’t know what for. In case anything happens, I want to tell you that SI’s future is in your hands.”

With that, Howard started to walk away with his plate of food, back to the claustrophobic room. 

“What do you mean in my hands?” Tony asked, feeling baffled. 

Howard stopped at his tracks. “Time will tell, Anthony.”

Tony watched his father walk away, disappearing into the darkness of the living room. Tony sat down at the dining table, taking a minute for himself. This was the most civilized conversation he ever had with his father. Today was indeed a weird day. 

“What are you up to, Obi…” Tony muttered to himself. He cupped his face with his hands, and sighed deeply. 

But Tony decided that he wasn’t going to believe his dad’s accusation. Obadiah was a good man; he took care of Tony whenever Howard went for business meetings and whenever Howard shouted or hit Tony. Obadiah was there for Tony, and for Stark Industries. There was no way he would do something like that. Howard had to be paranoid, fearing something that wasn’t even happening.

Whatever it was, Tony could deal with it later. Right now, he had to look for Thor and sit with him for a while, before joining the others for the movie. Tony walked to the living room, feeling like his world was very slowly crumbling, cracks appearing on his foundation. 

What was he going to do…?

Right, his father already gave the answer. Only time would tell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What is Tony going to do about Howard's accusation?


	6. Day 6: The Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and his close friends embark on a little mission to see if Howard's accusation is valid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, how are all of you? I hope you are having, or going to have a great a weekend ahead of you!  
> Here's the next update for this story. Thank you so much for all your support! I truly appreciate it, guys!  
> I hope ya'll enjoy this chapter!  
> Happy reading!!

“Sharon Stone!” Steve exclaimed, pointing to her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. “Bucky’s favorite actress!”

Tony snorted, while Natasha laughed at Steve’s excitement.

It was 10am, and the gang had decided to drive down to the Walk of Fame, to firstly, take a wefie and secondly, to look at some of the stars.

“Did you guys see Jackie Chan’s one?” Clint was grinning. “I have mad respect for that man!”

Thor did some fake karate moves and accidentally backhand slapped Clint’s face. Bruce’s eyebrows shot up, while the rest of them stopped walking.

“Friend Clint,” Thor cried out. “I’m sorry!”

“It’s okay, we’re all fanboying,” Clint winced. He turned to Natasha.

“You should avoid mirrors,” Natasha shrugged at him.

“What?!” Clint’s eyes widened. He took his phone out and checked himself using the front camera.

“Don’t believe everything you hear, sweetheart,” Natasha carded his hair and walked past him. The rest of them were snickering, much to the displeasure of Clint.

“You guys are assholes,” Clint huffed.

“But you love us!!” Tony turned to him. When Clint had a little pout and wasn’t replying, Tony went up to his face. “You love us right, right, right?”

“Yes oh god!” Clint let out a laugh and pushed Tony away.

“What are we doing for lunch?” Bruce asked.

There was a couple of seconds of silence as Tony prepared his answer.

“We are buying Mexican from a food truck and will enjoy it at Santa Monica Pier,” Tony read it right off the itinerary, which was in his phone.

“Sounds good,” Steve said.

“Is it just me, or do we all look good in sunglasses?” Clint asked, adjusting his.

Everyone stopped and turned to look at each other.

“We look cool and conspicuous at the same time,” Bruce laughed.

“So Tony? Where’s the food truck?” Natasha asked, taking out her sunglasses.

“Olympic Boulevard,” Tony said. “We need to drive.”

“I’m driving, because I can follow the speed limits,” Natasha volunteered.

“Yes please,” Steve said, in an almost begging tone. “I don’t want us to get a speeding ticket or worse, into an accident because you want to race with the stranger beside you.”

Tony grinned. Just this morning, Tony was behind the wheel. He sped down Malibu, racing with a stranger who didn’t even know he was being challenged.

“I agree with friend Steve, even though I love speedy rides because of the thrills that go down south,” Thor confessed.

Everyone turned to stare at him.

“You mean… you were… hard in the car?” Tony asked, wondering how it was possible no one noticed because everyone were squeezed in in one car. Thor nodded his head with a cheeky smile.

“And that time when Natasha drove the convertible to the strawberry stall?” Clint asked, his eyes wide.

Thor turned to him, his smile slowly turning into a smirk.

“Oh my god!!” Clint exclaimed, getting the attention of a few tourists. “You guys are nuts!!”

“Pun!!” Tony and Bruce said at the same time. The gave each other a fist bump while Clint, looking frazzled, jogged to where their car was parked.

 

…

 

It was a miracle that the 6 of them found a bench to sit on and eat their Mexican food. Clint and Thor volunteered to sit on the ground, while Natasha, Bruce, Steve and Tony shared the bench, leaving a little space in the middle so that they could place their food and eat it. Tony was enjoying the sound of the waves rolling by as it was giving him a slight amount of calm. A flock of seagulls flew by, and Thor shielded the food, much to the amusement of Natasha and Bruce.

“So you suspect Obi has been dealing with Roxxon under the table?” Clint asked nonchalantly.

Tony looked around to see if anyone had heard that.

“Clint… we’re in public place and can you please don’t say that out loud?” Tony told him quietly. Clint sobered up, understanding where Tony was coming from.

“But do you, Tony?” Natasha asked.

“No… I mean… At this point of time, I don’t even know who to trust anymore,” Tony took another bite off his grilled chicken taco and expressed his worry.

“Trust yourself, friend Tony,” Thor said firmly. “Our gut feeling usually tells us the truth.”

“Okay, then in that case, I don’t think Obi is doing anything illegal,” Tony said firmly. “And my dad might just be paranoid.”

“You trust Obi so much?” Steve asked, frowning, while taking another bite off his beef burrito. “I mean, the accusation is coming from your dad, his own business partner.”

“I know it’s odd, but welcome to my family, where my dad’s business partner is more of a dad to me than my real dad,” Tony summed up. “I mean… even my butler is better!”

“Okay, let’s say your dad’s right, shouldn’t we look for evidence?” Natasha pointed out.

Tony sighed. Part of him wanted to and part of him didn’t want to, because what if Obadiah was really doing something illegal?

“Fine… But my dad himself couldn’t dig up anything,” Tony said.

“Then we’ll try,” Natasha assured him while eating her burrito.

“Honestly? I think I’ll do this bit by myself,” Tony said, finishing up his first taco. He reached out across the bench and took his second taco. “I don’t want to put you guys in any trouble.”

“Shut up,” Clint said fondly yet firmly. “We’re friends. We help each other, that’s what we do. Also, you have done so much for us. This could be our way, or, one of our ways of thanking you.”

Tony looked at his group of friends sitting around and eating Mexican food, all looking at him for affirmation. He didn’t want to involve them in case something was _really_ happening inside Stark. But oh well… he could have some help searching for evidence. After that, they would not get involved in any shit related to SI.

“Fine,” Tony reluctantly agreed. “Help look for evidence. But that’s it.”

The others accepted it happily.

“But first, we need to go to the park of legacy,” Thor said cheerfully.

“It’s called Legacy Park, Thor,” Tony corrected him, looking amused. “Yeah, we’ll go there before going back home.”

“We should get milkshakes!” Steve suggested.

Everyone else agreed with this gladly. They couldn’t wait to explore the park. Moreover, they couldn’t wait to search for evidence at the Stark mansion.

 

…

 

After an entire afternoon out at the park hearing Clint squeal because of the ducks, Thor repeatedly saying ‘quackity quack’ and Bruce freaking out over the snake, lizard and frog mosaics, Tony sent his friends back home while he drove down to Stark Industries, West Branch, still hanging on to his vanilla milkshake.

If there was any dirt to dig up, the main Stark server in the company should help. Tony was also bringing his clean energy idea to upload in the server, to seem inconspicuous.

He parked the car and simply walked in, after showing his pass to the security.

“Welcome, Mr. Stark,” the receptionist smiled at him. “Here on a weekend?”

“Yeah, wanted to drop something in the server before I leave tomorrow.” Tony gave her his charming smile and walked up the stairs, to his dad’s and Obadiah’s shared office.

He opened the door and was relieved to find no one in there. It was a weekend and Obadiah and Howard had no business in here.  

Tony went up to the desktop and logged in. He opened up the main server to drop his file, so that if he got caught he could just say he wanted to drop an idea.

He then hacked into the mainframe and waited for a few minutes as it finally gave him authorized access.

“Let’s see,” Tony muttered to himself. He then took a sip of milkshake.

“What are we up to?” Obadiah’s voice came from the front door even before Tony could click on one of the files.

Tony nearly jumped up from his seat and choked on the drink. He spat out some of the milkshake, creating a mess on the table and computer screen. He coughed a little, feeling tears pricking the corners of his eyes. 

But he managed to keep his cool and watched Obadiah slowly walk in. Tony’s hand quickly exited the mainframe and he opened up the server window, all while focusing his gaze on Obadiah.

“It’s a damn door, Obi, why don’t you open it with some noise?” Tony pretended to look slightly amused and annoyed. He took a kleenex from the box beside him and wiped the area.  “Anyway, I’m dropping an idea, Obi.” Tony managed it smoothly.

“What idea?” Obadiah seemed more interested. He walked to the desktop and stopped behind Tony. “Hmm, Stark solar panels?”

“Yes, solar panels but it’s my idea to modify the solar cells, so that their efficiency is increased, to minimize heat wastage,” Tony briefly explained while pulling out his blueprint.

Obadiah was examining it intently. “When did you come up with this?”

“A few hours back, actually,” Tony shrugged. “I woke up early morning and couldn’t sleep back so I watched the sun rise. And then it hit me, about solar energy and the flaws the panels have. With my idea, we can generate more power, income for the company, oh and more press attention.”

Obadiah turned to face the younger boy with his lips pursed. “Really, you haven’t forgotten about that?”

Tony tilted his head to the side with a hint of a look of defiance. “No. I had to think twice before dropping this.”

“Right,” Obadiah turned his attention back to the blueprint. He cleared his throat. “You cooked this up in 4 hours?”

“2, actually,” Tony grinned.

Obadiah was impressed. As Tony uploaded the file into the company’s server, Obadiah gave Tony’s back a firm pat.

“I’m sure your dad will be happy,” he said.

“Yeah sure,” Tony scoffed. “Anyway, I’m done here.”

“Go back home and enjoy, my boy! It’s your second last day here,” Obadiah said cheerfully.

“Sure, we might watch a horror movie,” Tony shrugged. “If that’s enjoyment then sure.”

Obadiah laughed as Tony skipped out of the office. After shutting the door, Tony pulled out his phone and sent a text to the others.

 

_My mission failed. How about you guys?_

 

Tony winked at the receptionist as he walked out of the building. He sat in his convertible and drove back home, taking occasional sips from his milkshake.

While he was in the freeway, Clint, Bruce and Steve sent him their replies back, respectively.

 

_As your dad's still out, Natasha is still trying in your dad’s office. But I couldn’t find. - Coffee poisoner_

 

_I couldnt find a thing - Science buddy_

 

_He’s clean. I can’t find any docs about Obi dealing under the table. -Hot Damn_ _Boyfriend_

 

Tony sighed in frustration. He tossed his phone to the side and kept driving. He wanted to go home and crash onto his bed with his friends. But his mind wasn’t giving up on thinking about Obadiah, the company and his father’s accusation.

After a few seconds of silence, Tony slammed his foot on the break hard and stopped at the edge of the cliff, near the strawberry seller.

He breathed in and out, trying to calm himself down. Today was a Saturday. What was Obadiah doing inside Stark Industries’ West Branch building…? Tony knew that Obadiah and Howard had decided to work at home on the weekends, so that they could get rest. The only time they went back to the office on a weekend was when they had a press or PR problem.

“Boy, are you okay?” the strawberry seller waved at him with a grin. “Buy a box, strawberries can help.”

Tony couldn’t help but laugh at that. He got out of the car, taking his wallet out. “I’ll take one home.”

The seller stood up, happy to have made another sale. He gave Tony the best box of strawberries he had. After buying it, Tony started to walk back to his car.

“Whatever you are going through, boy,” the seller called out after him. “It will be okay. Don’t overthink it. Just smile!”

And Tony couldn’t help it but smile at that. The man must have seen Tony’s face, looking really worried when he was still in the car.

“Advice taken, Señor,” Tony grinned.

The man gave him a mock salute, before sitting back down on his chair. Tony placed the box on the seat beside him and sped off back home.

 

…

 

“So that happened,” Natasha said while taking another piece of strawberry from the box. “He walked in before you accessed the files….”

Steve pursed his lips at that information. “Seems really suspicious. But… I’m just glad you’re safe, Tony.”

“Maybe he had work to do…” Tony shrugged. “Or maybe he left a file…”

“You still trust him?” Bruce asked, frowning.

“Bruce, you don’t get it,” Tony turned to look at his good friend. “Obi has been there for me for a long time. Whenever my dad abuses me, he’s there to stop it. He’s taken some serious PR fire when my dad couldn’t cope. I don’t think I’m buying my dad’s accusation on Obi.”

Thor squeezed Tony’s shoulder in a reassuring manner. “As long as you trust him, as long as you know Obi, and trust your gut, we will back you up.”

Tony gave Thor a long look and a smile. The rest of them settled down on Tony’s bed, relishing the comfortable silence that was settling around them. They were already finishing up the box of strawberries Tony had bought.

“So there was nothing in my dad’s office?” Tony asked, lying down on Steve’s left bicep.

“No…” Natasha said. “All the files are really clean. They don’t point to any sinister activities Obi might be up to. I think your dad recently did look at all those files because they were messed up and not in order. So, nope.”

“Damn,” Tony whispered. “Whatever it was, should have been in the server. Obi’s transactions and stuff…”

“But he could have deleted all of them?” Thor asked, leaning back against the headboard. “Depends on how friend Tony dealt with him getting caught.”

“Hey, I’m right here, and I dealt with it just fine,” Tony sat up and raised an eyebrow. “Anyway, he could have but I did distract him with a potential invention of mine. But really, Nat, you couldn’t find a thing?”

“No…” Natasha replied, again. But a cheeky smile formed on her face this time. “I did see a picture of you, your younger self holding your first circuit board…”

Tony’s cheeks went beet red. But what he found even more unbelievable was the fact that Howard actually had a photo of him in his office. For someone who hadn’t cared about Tony for a long time, that was easily an odd behavior.

But he chose not to share this with his friends. He, honestly, wanted them to have fun and enjoy themselves, especially on their last night in Malibu. He managed to grin at the others, completely pushing his feelings away.

Why was his heart beating so fast? Why did he suddenly want to talk to his dad, to ask him so many questions about the company and about their relationship?

Why share with him his suspicion on Obi, if he hadn’t actually cared about Tony that much…

Tony felt his tears welling up, an effect of pushing his thoughts and feelings away too quickly. But he even managed to suppress that, because, let’s face it, some of the people he loved were gathered in the room with him. They made him so happy and he felt loved with them around. He’d rather laugh with them right now, than cry.

“Hey,” Clint piped up after eating the last piece of strawberry. “Jarvis suggested we use the pool.”

“Can we use it tomorrow instead?” Bruce sighed.

“What do we do now?” Steve asked.

“Anyone up for a night of horror movie?” Tony sat upright. His voice nearly cracked as he was trying to push his tears away. “I heard the Thai horror movies have comedy and horror fused together perfectly.”

“I’m in,” Clint grinned. “Can’t wait to see who is gonna scream like a girl for the first jumpscare!”

So, the 6 of them decided to spend their last night in Malibu watching a horror movie. They decided to shut the curtains and door in Tony’s room, and placed a ‘do not disturb’ sign outside. Ana helped them bring in popcorn and drinks and left them to their own devices.

Tony and his close friends huddled together on his bed as the opening of a Thai horror movie started to play on the big TV screen.

But Tony was still feeling conflicted. Thor had said they would back him up as long as Tony trusted himself. Tony did trust himself, but why did something feel so fishy? Even when Tony was defending Obadiah, his gut feeling wasn’t feeling fully satisfied by the explanation he was giving...

Tony sighed and leaned back, resting his head Steve’s shoulder. He closed his eyes as he munched on a popcorn.

He trusted Obadiah, so much. He was there for Tony. He was the one constant in Tony’s life. And, he was close to being Tony’s father figure. Jarvis was his ultimate father figure, no doubt. But Obadiah was there, encouraging him to pursue engineering and to help out with the company. Could he really be dealing under the table, with Stark Industries’ rival?

Tony sighed, frustrated with himself. He decided, firmly, that Obadiah was still trustworthy, and that the accusation was formed because of Howard’s paranoia and trust issues. For fuck’s sake, that man doesn’t trust anyone!

Tony scoffed softly.

“First jumpscare incoming, I think,” Bruce said in a warning tone, squashing his face into Thor’s shoulder.

Tony’s thoughts vanished at that moment. He decided to live in the present and waited to see which of his close friends were going to be the first person to scream at that jump scare.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who do you really think screamed at the first jump scare? :D  
> Please do drop any feedback you have. I'd be more than happy to read it and reply! :)


	7. Day 7: Goodbye Malibu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the last day in Malibu for the 6 kids, and they have fun. It's all tears and smiles for them, except for Howard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I want to thank each and every of you for reading this story and for coming all the way to part 2's end. Your support means the world to me!  
> There will be a part 3, which I'll upload pretty soon. I'll try to keep my chapter updates regular, because I'm busy with my internship now :")  
> I hope you guys are pumped to see what will happen in part 3 to Tony and to all the characters. All I can say is, part 3 is gonna be epic!!
> 
> But again, thank you so much for reading part 2 and part 1, if you had. Here's the last chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and story!  
> You can freely leave a feedback. I'd be happy to read it!!
> 
> Happy reading!

The morning glow was slowly spreading around Malibu, with the night skies dispersing, giving way to the light morning blue skies. 

Tony was sitting at the ledge on the roof, watching the skies turning brighter by the minute. He decided to close his eyes, to listen to the waves rolling by, touching the shore with grace.

He surrendered his body to nature, letting the wind sway him. Tony felt at peace, after many months of struggling to calm himself down.

He loved the beach.

It wasn’t long before he heard a voice calling him, softly at first. It gradually became loud. 

Steve. It was his Steve.

Tony opened his eyes, coming face-to-face with his boyfriend.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of you nearly kissing me?” Tony smiled.

“You look beautiful,” Steve said softly. He gave Tony’s lips a kiss. “The rest of them are waking up, going to shower.”

“Figured,” Tony said.

All of them had cramped on Tony’s and Steve’s shared bed after the horror movie, scared to sleep at their own rooms. Turned out, Thor was the first person to scream when the first jumpscare had appeared in the movie. His scream scared Bruce, who had nearly choked on the popcorn he was munching on. Clint had spat out hot chocolate all over Tony’s floor when he heard Thor’s scream. 

“His scream was scarier than the jumpscare in the movie,” Natasha had joked about it once everyone had calmed down.

And the irony of it all, Thor had stated that he could sleep alone. But after two hours, he sneaked back into Tony’s room and snuggled between Bruce and Tony; they left him space in case he came back in.

Tony had woken up early morning as he wasn’t that tired. He showered and headed to the roof to watch the sunrise. Steve had also freshened up and joined Tony about fifteen minutes later. 

“You know, I thought you’d spend your time up here,” Tony pointed at the gym set up at the roof. “You’re such a gym junkie.”

“We’re on vacation,” Steve laughed. “I’ll get back to gymming once school starts.”

“Sadly, in a week,” Tony hopped off the ledge. Steve swung his arm around Tony’s hip and pulled him closer to him. 

“You know… I was supposed to not go to Grand U,” Steve suddenly said. Both of them stopped beside the gym, below the wind chimes. “I was… wanted to be an artist and thought, why not join the art school.”

“What made you not do that?” Tony asked.

“I figured I could do art later on and get a degree first so that I have something to fall back on in case my art career falters,” Steve explained with a sigh.

“That’s… smart, actually,” Tony smiled. 

“I’m glad I came here,” Steve said. He looked into Tony’s chocolate brown eyes while brushing Tony’s soft hair back. “I met the others, Bucky is there and most importantly, I met you… I’m just glad I’m where I am right now.”

“I’m glad you are, Steve,” Tony grinned.

The wind started to beat harder, making the wind chimes move, creating a tune. Steve leaned in first, and so did Tony. Their lips collided onto each other softly. 

Tony leaned back slightly, and Steve’s hand held his back, supporting him. They kissed hard, relishing each other’s presence and taste. Tony’s fingers ran through Steve’s hair, gripping them tightly as he felt a great amount of love surge through his body for Steve. 

They kept at it for another few more seconds, holding onto each other, feeling their warmth. 

They broke away the kiss to catch their breath. 

“That was…” Tony started.

“Needed,” Steve completed the sentence.

“Let’s go down,” Tony smiled. “We’re going to buy souvenirs and hit the pool in the evening.”

“Souvenir shopping for hours?” Steve raised an eyebrow.

“You guys have no idea where we’re going after getting our souvenirs,” Tony smirked because he had a pretty fantastically laid out shopping plan for his good friends and boyfriend.

 

…

 

“What do you mean get anything we want?” Clint asked in a high-pitched voice. 

“Really, money matters are all on me. Just get what you want from any of these outlets!” Tony grinned. “Come on, we only have two hours here if you want to get back to going to the pool!”

It was 1pm and the hot afternoon sun was hanging above the six kids’ heads. Tony had brought them to some souvenir shopping at 10 earlier, and they reached home on time for lunch. Now, he’s brought them over to Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills for one final shopping spree in Malibu, before they flew off to Boston. 

Thing was, none of them knew what to buy there, because it’s not like they were soaked into this luxury lifestyle when they were growing up. And… they knew how expensive even one item could be. And yet here they were, encouraged by their good friend to buy clothes or perfumes or even shoes.

“What to… what,” Bruce stuttered, still in awe at where he was standing.

“Presentation clothes?” Tony suggested. “Shoes even. Or normal clothes to wear in college! New bags, wallets, jewelry if you’re into that kind of stuff, Nat, and perfumes… come on, there’s so much of stuff!”

“Yeah… but… we don’t do this everyday,” Natasha spoke up. “Who cares. I’m getting to have some retail therapy, I’m in.”

The rest of them walked down the street, looking into the shops. 

“I think I’m gonna get perfume,” Steve said.

“Why?” Tony let out a chuckle. “To seduce me?”

Steve laughed, giving Tony a pat on his back. His tone changed, laced with lust. “You have no idea.”

Tony cleared his throat as he felt something stirring in his pants. He squirmed a little.

“Friend Tony, are you well?” Thor asked, turning to look at him.

“I’m fine!” Tony said a little too enthusiastically, with a grin. “Alright kids, first stop. Go in and see what you like.”

All of them entered the Louis Vuitton, and looked around. Each of them gasped at the products and prices. 

“Janet’s gonna be so jealous at us!” Natasha laughed as she looked at their bags. 

Clint and Bruce were squealing in joy when they saw the wallets; something Tony was definitely going to use to poke fun at the both of them in the future.

He left each of them to their own devices, and hung around Steve, who was trying out the perfumes with the help of one of the salespeople. Tony felt himself getting turned on, just thinking about Steve in bed, smelling like  _ that _ . 

“Which one should I get?” Steve suddenly turned to ask him, stretching out both perfume tester strips at Tony.

“Huh?” Tony blinked at Steve. 

“He would like you to smell them and choose a scent for him, Mister Stark,” the salesperson smiled sweetly at Tony.

“Wow, you know him,” Steve raised an eyebrow. 

“Yes sir, big fan. I’m only a part-timer here, and after my break, I’ll be starting college, electrical engineering degree, motivated by Mister Stark, of course!” the salesperson enthusiastically said. “Oh, but I’m not supposed to talk about it. Pardon me.”

“No it’s fine,” Tony smiled. He smelled both and chose the one that had a light hint of a cocoa smell.

“Shall I pack it for you?” the salesperson asked politely, to which Steve nodded his head. “And Mister Stark, thank you.”

Tony watched the salesperson walk away with the perfume.

“He’s a big fan,” Steve noted.

“A very big fan,” Tony agreed, watching the back of the salesperson disappear round the corner of the shop.

After spending nearly half-an-hour at this outlet, the 6 of them managed to get their stuff and move on to the next store. And all Tony could see was his friends being happy, and hear that salesperson’s words about how Tony had motivated him. Huh. Kind words from strangers; now that was something Tony had to digest because even the media hadn’t painted him in such a way before. The universe… so weird, was all Tony could think about as he walked into the next store with his good friends.   
  
  


...

 

Tony was shaking his legs, while splashing them on the wate r. Steve was sitting beside him with his arms hung loosely around his shoulder. Clint and Bruce were sitting on an inflatable duck and donut respectively, sipping on their iced teas Ana had so kindly prepared for them. Natasha and Thor were doing backstrokes in the pool, laughing as they were swimming around.

That was when Tony’s phone vibrated. He checked his notification and his eyes widened at it. 

“Guys, the cross-disciplinary modules’ results are out!” Tony gasped. He immediately logged in to his school account to check which subject he had gotten.

He was hoping to have gotten his first or second choice, modules that had to do with business and calculation. He had chosen the acting module as his third choice as he had some interest in it. He regretted putting that out of impulse, but oh well. People rarely got their third choice.

“I should log in soon to check what I got,” Clint grinned. He raised his glass at Bruce, who raised his back.

Tony let out a high-pitched shriek, which scared the living hell out of all of them gathered there.

“I got acting!!” he admitted in an unusually high-pitched voice. “Fuck! It was my third fucking choice!! My last choice!!”

“That’s okay, friend Tony,” Thor coolly said. “I’m here and I can help you.”

“You will?” Tony looked at him, his eyes wide. “Thank you Thor!!”

Steve couldn’t help but laugh at his boyfriend’s behavior. He gave Tony’s back a firm pat, giving him a reassuring look. Tony went closer to Steve, still looking perplexed. 

“Guys, what time’s our flight?” Natasha asked. 

“10, we go to the airport in about 5 hours,” Tony replied, sounding as if he was on auto-pilot.

“Tony…” Steve turned to him. “Look at me.”

He used his index finger to lift Tony’s chin up. Tony looked at Steve, pouting a little.

“It’s going to be okay,” Steve smiled, caressing Tony’s cheek. Tony leaned into the touch and rested his cheek on Steve’s palm. “Trust me when I say this. You’re going to do well for the module. Thor’s here to help you and you’re amazing in everything you do.”

Tony knew Steve was encouraging him, to make him feel better. And he had an entire week to enjoy before fully worrying about the module. So, why worry this much? Of course, he couldn’t help it.

“Thank you, Steve,” Tony said softly.  

“Such lovebirds,” Clint said. He used his hand as a paddle and tried to move himself to the edge of the pool. Bruce gave Clint’s inflatable float a push, sending him nearly crashing onto the edge. “You have such strength.”

“I can surprise you,” Bruce said calmly, while basking in the evening sun. 

“I think I’ve seen the surprise before,” Clint rolled out from his float to the wet tiles, and got up to take his phone. 

“That wasn’t even the full one,” Bruce said, acknowledging his behavior when Ross had attacked Clint and Tony last semester in school.

Clint turned around, giving Bruce a long look, before logging into the school portal. He sat beside Steve, who was more than interested to check the subject he got. 

“Anyone who wants to check their subject allocation can use my phone. It’s water resistant!” Clint declared, earning Tony’s eye roll.

“I’ll check it once we reach Boston,” Natasha shrugged from the pool. “Thor, let’s go one more round and then we’re done.”

“Sure thing, friend Natasha,” Thor smiled. “I have stamina.”

  
  


...

 

As the sun started to set in Malibu, Tony found himself running across the level to the various rooms, to see if his friends have at least packed 90% of their stuff. Steve and Tony had already packed their luggage right after the pool session. But the others needed more time. 

“Clint, just fold it neatly and roll it up,” Tony said while helping Clint out. “And do the same and the rest will fit.”

Natasha sprang into action as Clint got confused momentarily.

He ran down to check on Thor and Bruce, who had already packed and were sitting on their bed, chatting.

“Oh, wow,” Tony was impressed. “Well, just bring your luggage down and check for your passport!”

Thor and Bruce did a final check, and Tony went back to his room.

“They’re old enough, Tony,” Steve laughed and hugged his boyfriend. “You don’t need to be so stressed on their behalf.”

“I just wanted to oversee it, I guess,” Tony admitted, laughing while shaking his head. “It’s a habit.”

Steve continued to hug Tony when there was a small knock on their door, which was ajar.

“I need to see you, in my office,” Howard quickly said and walked away.

It took all of Tony’s willpower not to push Steve across the bed as he just got scared shitless by his own dad. 

His father had boundary issues… man…

“Go deal with him first,” Steve brushed back Tony’s hair. And he sounded reassuring, which made Tony feel safe. 

Tony jogged out of his room to his father’s office, to get the talk over and done with. 

He went up to his father, who was standing by the window, looking out.

“Going to take my so called accusation seriously or?” Howard asked Tony.

Tony braced himself. “This might surprise you, but I actually did take it seriously and tried to investigate. Dad, I think you’re being… paranoid. Obi… Obi is a good man! He’s been here for the company and wants to make sure the company will be okay! I can’t see why he’ll destroy what he wanted, by you know, dealing under the table.”

Howard didn’t turn to face his son, but Tony could feel the tension rising in the air. He wanted to sneak out of the room and speed off to the airport as soon as possible. 

“I see,” Howard nodded his head. 

“Anyway I… gotta go… I have a flight to catch,” Tony stuttered. 

“Disappointment…” Howard muttered, a little too loudly.

“I know,” Tony sighed, not ready to end this vacation on a bad note. 

"Not only with Obi, but with who you are," Howard added on, sounding quiet. 

Tony felt something snap inside of him. He knew what his dad was referring to; Steve. "My dating life is out of your jurisdiction, no offence. And at least I have the balls to be who I really am and not be afraid of it. Any other disappointment you want to add on to the list?"

Howard didn't say anything. He was just standing there, looking rigid.

"That's what I thought," Tony said smugly. 

“Have a safe flight, Anthony. Do well in school but also keep the company in mind,” Howard said, sounding like a robot who had repeated these words many times.

“Thanks dad,” Tony said flatly and backed away. He gave his father's back one last look.

With that, he walked out of the office, without waiting for his father’s reply. He slammed the door behind him. He didn’t want to hear more of his father’s accusatory words or anything hurtful.

He went back up, where Jarvis was helping them pull out their luggage bags. Natasha was tying her jacket sleeves around her waist as Ana joined her, telling her something. Tony saw the tears form in Natasha’s eyes. She and Ana shared a tight hug, before they let go of each other. Tony looked behind them, at Jarvis and Steve embracing each other. Thor and Bruce were laughing as they pulled their luggage and left it with the others’ outside. Clint did a little stretch, as he joined Thor, asking about the weight of the luggage. 

Tony sighed. His little vacation was fun while it lasted. But now he had to go back and spend another week in his apartment before going to school, and worst, he now has to do an acting module; he was so screwed.

“Are we ready to go?” Tony asked them.

“Are you kidding me?” Clint asked. “I am soo not ready to go. In fact, I want to stay longer!”

“I wish you could, Master Barton,” Jarvis smiled sadly. 

“Let’s go to the airport and weigh all these,” Natasha said, while pulling some of the luggage down with Ana. 

The others trudged down the stairs, absolutely not wanting to go back to Boston. But… they had no choice.

Ana and Jarvis were loading the luggage bags into the car. Tony took that opportunity to go to the edge of the cliff, where they saw the shooting star a few nights ago. He stood there, feeling the wind, and feeling calm as he saw the night sky and the stars.

“Anthony,” his mother called him. 

Tony turned back to look at her. “Mom?”

Maria Stark caressed her sons’ cheeks, and gave his forehead a soft kiss. “I’m going to miss you, Tony.” She brushed his hair back for him. “I only wish I had spent more time with you. I’m sorry I couldn’t, son.”

“Mom,” Tony let out a laugh, as his eyes welled up. “You did the best you could. I’m glad you were there when dad changed into his asshole form.”

Maria looked at Tony. Her lips were quivering. “Oh Tony, I wish… I wish you two got along more.”

“I know,” Tony said, looking away from her. 

“I love you, son,” Maria said as she smiled at Tony.

She then hugged Tony, and he hugged her back. He rested his head on her shoulder as he smelled the floral scent coming from her. It was the smell he associated his mother with. Maria’s hug tightened further, and Tony felt safe with his mom there. He felt at home with her there. He sighed in content, as he felt at ease on the inside.

“You need to go,” Maria broke the hug. She hastily wiped her tears. “You have a flight to catch, Tony.”

“That I do,” Tony laughed. He stared into his mother’s eyes for a few seconds as he searched for the right words to tell her. “I love you, mom. And don’t let dad give you a hard time.”

“I’ll try not to,” she gave Tony’s cheek a kiss, before guiding him back to the 7-seater car, which Jarvis was set to drive.

“It was a pleasure to have you all,” Maria smiled at them. 

“It was our pleasure,” Natasha smiled back. She then hugged Maria Stark, who then proceeded to have a group hug with the other kids.

At this point, Tony too shared a hug with Ana. 

Tony was grinning after he broke the hug. He then chose to look up, and he saw a figure standing at one of the windows, his dad in his office. He was drinking something as he continued to stare at Tony. 

Tony was beginning to feel slightly uncomfortable. He then saw Howard’s figure walk away into the room. When he saw that, Tony felt relieved.

“Okay, let’s get into the car,” Jarvis said after Maria let the kids go. 

“I hope to see you kids soon,” Maria smiled. Ana joined her side. 

The six of them piled into the car half-heartedly. Within a few seconds, they were already crossing the bends and speeding out of the main gates. 

“Now, don’t be too sad. I’m sure you all will come back here someday,” Jarvis tried to reassure them.

“This was one of the best vacations I had in years,” Clint confessed, sounding quiet. 

“This was my first vacation,” Bruce spoke up. “And I loved it.”

“Well, it certainly won’t be your last,” Tony smiled from the front seat. 

For the rest of the trip to the airport, no one spoke much. Everyone were taking in the coastal sight and then at the city. Boy, were they going to miss this place like fuck.

 

…

 

At the airport, Jarvis helped them unload their luggage onto the airport luggage trolley. The rest of them were adjusting themselves while waiting for Tony to say goodbye to Jarvis.

“I’m gonna miss you so much,” Tony gave Jarvis a big hug. 

Jarvis let out a weak chuckle, as tears were clouding his bright eyes. “I’m going to miss you too, Master Stark. Look, don’t let your father’s words get to you.”

Tony wiped his tears away and smiled a watery smile. “He’s a pain in the butt but… family’s family, I guess.”

“We are,” Jarvis gave Tony’s shoulder a firm squeeze. He then went to the other kids, who were waiting patiently for Tony. “Take care of yourselves, and just… keep each other alive.”

They nodded their heads, and Thor swung an arm around Bruce. “We will.” he said firmly. Natasha smiled at how firm Thor sounded.

Jarvis went to Steve. “Master Rogers, you promised.”

Steve held Jarvis’ hands tightly. “I did. And I’ll always be true to it.”

Jarvis’ eyes started to water again. He smiled at them, before walking back to his car. He then drove off after giving them one last smile, leaving the 6 of them to just stand there, feeling slightly lost at what they were going to do.

“Okay,” Steve spoke up first. “Let’s weigh our luggage and then see if we can get something to eat after checking-in.”

The others started to walk in, following Steve who was holding Tony’s hand. Tony looked crushed; he was already missing Jarvis and Ana a lot. 

“What if we have extra baggage weight?” Bruce asked while helping Natasha and Clint with the weighing of the luggage.

“That’s the least of my worries,” Tony said bluntly.

Clint turned back, looking slightly alarmed. “Then, what is? Oh, is it that drama module?”

Tony nodded his head. 

“One thing at a time, guys, no offence,” Natasha said, giving Tony an encouraging smile. “We’re all worried about our new modules, new teachers, and Clint and I are worried about Fisk joining our dance competition. So…, let’s do this one at a time. We’re not even at our apartments yet.”

“Wilson Fisk?” Thor raised an eyebrow. “You both better win him.”

“Oh, that’s the plan, Thor,” Clint grinned.

“Fine,” Tony said, suddenly snapping himself out of whatever thought that was rocking him. “What’s the weight? Did it cross the total we booked for?”

Fortunately for them, the weight was just right. They proceeded to check-in their stuff at the counter and obtained their boarding passes. After a few checks, they decided to sit down at a cafe for a light meal as they had time before they could board the jet.

 

...

 

The six of them were walking side by side one another towards the gate they had to board the flight from after a small meal in the cafe. Tony had used that as an excuse to dump two cups of espresso in him, much to the amusement of Clint and disapproval of Steve. Now, he was feeling wide awake. 

“Friend Tony,” Thor pulled Tony to his side. Steve turned to look at that, but after Thor’s smile, he joined Bruce, who was enthusiastically talking about why food tastes different when they were in the air, compared to when they were on ground.

“Hey Thor,” Tony smiled lightly. 

“I know you are really worried about your module, because yes, every module counts,” Thor started. “But… I’m right here so don’t worry too much, please. We all know you are sad to leave your family. Don’t let the module break you apart further. We all make mistakes, but it’s redemption that matters.”

Tony could feel his tears stinging his eyes once again. But he knew he had to keep a strong front. He didn’t want to cry in the fucking airport anyway. 

“Thank you, friend Thor.” Tony said, looking absolutely grateful. 

“Ah, you are following my style!” Thor laughed a little loudly. “I am honored.”

Tony snorted, and then threw his head back and laughed, getting the others’ attentions.

“Looks like we missed a good joke,” Natasha shrugged.

“Don’t worry, Steve is right here. Right, Steve? Your life’s a joke right?” Clint teased Steve, quoting what he had said to his good friends a few days back. Steve proceeded to nod his head, chuckling.

“And we’re all a part of it,” Bruce added on to the fun.

 

Three hours and a few snacks later, Tony finished his crossword puzzle book, which he had kept away when they had first landed in Malibu. He sighed as now, he had nothing much to do. The cabin lights were already dimmed, and nearly all the passengers were asleep.

Natasha and Clint were cuddling each other at the other row, with Thor resting his head on Clint’s shoulder, drooling on it slightly.

Bruce was fast asleep, with an extra blanket and some pillows. Even Bruce didn’t know why he felt so cold. But he was glad the flight attendant didn’t judge him for asking for an extra blanket.

Steve had his eyes closed but Tony knew he wasn’t sleeping, not yet.

As if on cue, Steve’s eyes fluttered open, and his deep ocean blue eyes immediately set its gaze upon Tony.

“I know I look good when I sleep,” Steve chuckled.

“You are,” Tony said, as he moved closer to Steve to place his head on his shoulder. Steve swung his arm around Tony, pulling him closer. “Thank you for being here.”

Steve gave Tony’s forehead a kiss. “Thank  _ you _ for having us here, and for giving us a good time.”

Both of them decided to fall asleep while feeling each other’s warmth. It took Tony longer because of his coffee, but he somehow managed it. 

When they woke up next, it was because the sun was shining directly on their faces. 

Once again, they were back in Boston, and were ready for another wild semester at school. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And they're back in Boston!
> 
> Stay tuned for part 3 if you want to see Thor helping Tony out with his acting module, and Clint and Natasha participating in the dance competition, in which Wilson Fisk also steps in. There'll be a new character introduced too!!!
> 
> Thank you so much for your support!! Please do leave feedback if you want to!


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